A teacher “pulled sickie” to go on a stag do in Portugal and ripped out passport pages to cover up the ruse.
Joe Wilson was a Year 6 teacher at Listerdale Junior Academy in Rotherham, South Yorkshire.
A tribunal has determined he deceived his employer by feigning illness to jet off to Portugal.
The panel found Mr Wilson took unauthorised leave on Thursday, May 18, and Friday, May 19, 2023.
He claimed he was unwell while actually travelling abroad.
His deception unravelled when an anonymous colleague alerted the school to photographs showing the teacher at an airport clutching a pint of beer, taken on the morning he had reported being too ill to work.
On the morning of May 18, 2023, at approximately 5am, Mr Wilson messaged the school: “I’m not going to be in school today. I’ve been up all night being sick and have got a really bad headache.”
He maintained the pretence the following day, writing: “I’m still no better so won’t be in school today. Can’t keep any food or water down. I’ll keep you updated.”
A teacher ‘pulled sickie’ to go on a stag do in Portugal and ripped out passport pages to cover up the ruse
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However, a photograph posted at 5.23am that same morning by another individual bore the caption: “Early start for stag do, few beers with the Portugal gaffer.”
The image showed Mr Wilson in the airport, beer in hand, directly contradicting his claims of illness.
When initially confronted, Mr Wilson insisted the photographs had been taken during a previous trip abroad.
He subsequently acknowledged the truth to the Teaching Regulation Agency, admitting he “agreed to attend a stag do in Lisbon” and describing his actions as “a huge error of judgement”.
A tribunal has determined that he deceived his employer by feigning illness to jet off to Portugal
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In October 2025, he told the TRA he “accepted full responsibility” for his conduct, including “falsifying a sickness”.
Mr Wilson also tore pages from his passport to eliminate evidence of his travels, removing pages 9, 10, 27 and 28, which would have contained stamps confirming his whereabouts.
He explained this decision came after an informal conversation with his headteacher and said he was “ashamed” of what he had done.
The tribunal concluded Mr Wilson’s behaviour fell short of the ethical standards expected of teachers and ran contrary to the profession’s claim to serve the public.
He claimed he was unwell while actually travelling abroad
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The panel determined his conduct lacked integrity, was dishonest, and risked bringing teaching into disrepute.
The judgment said: “In falsely reporting his sickness absence and providing an altered document during an investigation, Mr Wilson was intentionally misleading the school and concealing the truth.”
Despite these findings, the panel ruled that imposing a prohibition order banning Mr Wilson from the classroom would be disproportionate.
Instead, it decided that publishing the tribunal’s findings constituted sufficient sanction.
He left Listerdale Junior Academy in 2023, and it is unknown if he has returned to teaching.