A TEACHER at a Merseyside school “coerced” a former female colleague into touching his genitals and subjected her to “relentless pestering” it has been claimed.

In a 12 month period, Hugh O’Neill is alleged to have touched and made remarks about a former colleague’s breasts at the school.

A teacher regulation agency (TRA) panel was told how during the same period, Mr O’Neill is alleged to have had sexual contact with a female colleague despite her asking him to stop.

The hearing was told how Mr O’Neill, who is Irish and was observing from the Republic of Ireland via videolink, is reported to have made a number of comments about the female staff member, including saying she “looked busty” and was a “sexy b***h.”

He denies the allegations and said there had been a consensual relationship between the pair.

The woman, known only as Colleague A, told the panel when she initially began chatting to Mr O’Neill, who joined the school in 2019, she didn’t treat him any differently to other colleagues. On one occasion Colleague A said she had been on a night out and was walking home at which point it is alleged Mr O’Neill called her and “insisted” on giving her a lift back.

She said the teacher had told her to wait where she was and after arriving at her flat said “would it be cheeky if I asked for a kiss?” Colleague A said she was struck by the silence between them after she rejected this, which allegedly did not deter Mr O’Neill who said “it would be fun” and kept trying to kiss her “over a number of minutes.”

At another time, Colleague A said Mr O’Neill called her and said they should “meet up and have that kiss” before going on to ask about her bra size, saying he had noticed her breasts. The woman said he was “relentless” in calling and described it as “pestering.”

Colleague A said after she had been to the supermarket, Mr O’Neill once again called her and picked her up. She told the panel when they stopped the car he “kissed me out of nowhere” and it “felt horrible and wrong.”

Colleague A said this was “not what I wanted” and she remembered the shock of it occurring, adding how it made her feel like she had “left my own body and disassociated from what happened. She added how she felt “violated” and went on to say: “It was obvious I wasn’t comfortable, he knew what he wanted and was going to get it. That’s what I believe.”

Colleague A also alleged Mr O’Neill placed her hand on his genitals. She said he then asked “shall I drive you back then?” with the whole experience leaving her feeling numb.

During this time, Colleague A said Mr O’Neill had attempted to pull her bra down and put her hand back on his genitals whenever she moved away. She said it made her feel “really powerless” and she did not know how to stand up for herself.

Colleague A also alleged Mr O’Neill told her on the phone he had a fantasy about touching her while on school property. The former staff member said on another occasion, at Mr O’Neill’s address, he lay on his bed and placed her hand on his genitals.

She said: “I was never wanting to do that and that was obvious. I was so, so uncomfortable.

“It was the way he’d ask me to do it, it was like a command. I felt unable to say no and was being coerced into doing it, I wasn’t comfortable with it.”

After one incident, Colleague A said Mr O’Neill had phoned her to apologise and said she had made him “feel really bad” when she had asked to stop. The woman said she had felt under “verbal pressure” and “the whole situation was really distressing for me.”

Colleague A said when the matter came to light she felt like she had betrayed Mr O’Neill by speaking up. All contact between the pair ceased according to Colleague A who said she could not forgive Mr O’Neill for what had happened.

She said: “I just wanted to move on with my life.” The hearing continues.