Paedophile ran teaching website

**4me2** · 16th January 2010

Paedophile ran teaching website

By Hannah Richardson
Education reporter, BBC news

Samuel Kinge changed his name by deed poll from Daniel

A convicted paedophile and former teacher was free to run a major UK education website, the BBC has learned. Samuel Kinge, 28, from Evesham, was last week jailed for a second time for downloading abusive images of children.
He had been running the Sparklebox teaching and parenting resource website used in thousands of schools.
This was blocked in some areas after internet safety officials discovered who was running it and that there had been some "worrying interactivity".
The case comes just weeks after the government slightly relaxed incoming rules on how people who work or volunteer in schools are vetted.
It appears to expose a potential loophole in how paedophi1es could potentially access young children through technology.

I personally think that someone with a previous conviction of this nature shouldn't be allowed to access children via the internet

David Wright
e-Safety Officer
South West Grid for Learning

Internet safety officials have told the BBC they became concerned after a blog and pictures of children also started appearing on the website, which offers colourful teaching materials such as numeracy posters for teachers and children's bedroom posters for parents.
It led officials responsible for ensuring the safety of internet technology in schools in south-west England to block the site.
E-safety officer at the South West Grid for Learning Trust David Wright said: "We were first alerted to the problem in the summer of 2009 when our filtering and monitoring system disclosed to us that there were potential concerns with the website Sparklebox.
"There were areas where pictures of children were being published and up until recently there was an active blog.
"The concerns were about the interactive technology on the site and the previous conviction of the owner."
Kinge, who was known as Daniel Kinge before changing his name by deed poll, had been jailed for nine months in 2005 for downloading images of children being abused from the internet while working at a Warwickshire school.
Access to children?
Once the officials had taken the decision to block schools' access to Sparklebox they alerted the 11 other regional Grids for Learning across the UK.
It was then down to each grid to decide whether to block the site in their schools.
Grids including London, Northern, Cumbria and Lancashire also blocked the site. At least one grid decided not to block the website.
But the full reasons for the block were not revealed until Kinge appeared in court in December because of fears over prejudicing the case against him.
This led many teachers who were confused about what was going on to complain that they were being denied access to a useful resource.
Eventually the following statement was forwarded to local authorities by the South West Grid: "It is understood that a person who is on the record as an owner and director of Sparklebox Teacher Resources Limited (which appears to claim ownership of the SparkleBox web site and children's learning materials) is a registered sex offender who has recently admitted a second offence, is on remand in prison and is awaiting sentence in January."
Mr Wright said: "Throughout all of this our prime concern has been for the three-quarters of a million children across the South West and that has informed our decision as to what action to take."
Computer ban
He added: "I personally think that someone with a previous conviction of this nature shouldn't be allowed to access children via the internet."
But a West Mercia Police spokesman said there was nothing within the law to stop Kinge from running a website that went into schools.
In February 2005, he had successfully overturned a ban on using the internet on the grounds that it would prevent him from having almost any kind of job.
The spokesman added: "This time we have got a sexual offenders protection order to run for 15 years. He can't use any computer that isn't monitored by the police."
And he said a family member had taken over the running of the website. He could not say if anyone else had been involved in Sparklebox.
A spokeswoman for the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (Ceops) said: "Daniel Kinge, the owner has been sentenced to 12 months in prison following charges by West Mercia Police.
"As such Ceops feels that schools can resume use of this website in line with their normal risk assessment and management processes and in consultation with local authorities."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/8462650.stm

**russbeer** · 16th January 2010

the wife uses this site all the time. Her school have now banned the use of it in school but not for the teachers at home.

silly really.

**Bald Bouncer** · 16th January 2010

A FORMER teacher who set up a successful lesson planning website has been sent to prison for 12 months for a child porn offence.

Police recovered 424 computer images of children that Samuel Kinge had deleted.

Five years ago, Kinge was sent to prison for similar crimes. But concerns arose last year after photographs of children appeared on his website, Sparklebox.com, said Gareth Walters, prosecuting at Worcester Crown Court.

A police expert concluded that Kinge had an interest in young children, including the sexual abuse of babies.

Also recovered were 549 photographs of children in family settings that were not indecent.

Kinge, aged 28, of Shannon Way, Evesham, pleaded guilty to 17 counts of making indecent photographs of children.

Judge John Cavell said his behaviour was of a man determined to seek sexual gratification from viewing child images on the internet.

He said the defendant had shown a high degree of premeditation and had used software to destroy the pictures.

Kinge taught religious education at a primary school in Wellesbourne, Warwickshire, before he was sacked in 2005 after receiving a nine-month jail term.

But on September 24 last year he was arrested again and his computer seized.

On an online messaging system, Kinge went under the name Samuel on a site entitled “Under-5 Boys”, said Mr Walters. It carried a picture of a naked four-year-old.

Kinge told police he felt deeply ashamed. He claimed soft toys found at his home were Christmas presents.

He admitted making three trips to Uganda, insisting he was helping an orphanage.

He said photographs he took of children were for a record of his journey.

Defence counsel Andrew Davidson said his schools website was a legitimate business that had made money for four years.

Churchgoer Kinge had spent money on sex therapy after realising he needed professional help.

But Mr Davidson said the treatment had not worked and Kinge had slipped back into offending.

The judge passed a 15-year sexual offences prevention order banning Kinge from using a computer unless it had a police detection programme installed.

He was barred from contact with children under 16 and from working with them. He must also sign the sex offenders register for 10 years.

Source

Second offence 12 months sentence, good job he wasn't selling pirate DVD's he would have got at least 3 years second offence

**blacksheep** · 16th January 2010

Too right BB - the disparity between what 99% of the population would class as proper crimes and their sentences and noddy crimes which corporations or the government are pushing for prosecution on is ridiculous.