A former PE teacher has been charged with 13 sexual offences involving three children. Bronwen James, 29, from Chippenham, Wiltshire, appeared at Salisbury Magistrates’ Court to face the charges, which are alleged to have taken place over a three-year period. Wiltshire Police earlier confirmed that Bronwen James worked as a PE teacher at both Hardenhuish School in Chippenham and Bitterne Park School in Southampton.

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She is accused of engaging in sexual activity with two underage girls and a boy, including six charges relating to girls under 16, and four involving a boy. Additional charges include two counts of sexual communication with a child and one count of creating an indecent image of a child. Her case is set to move to Salisbury Crown Court on 7 August. The charges claim that James engaged in sexual activity with a 14-year-old girl, and also allegedly engaged in sexual communications with a girl aged between 13 and 15. James was also accused of four counts of sexual activity with a 16-year-old boy while in a position of trust between August 2021 and June 2022.

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Stephen Harrison, the chair of the bench, said: “By virtue of three of these offences being indictable only, which means they can only be heard in the crown court, we will be sending them to the crown court. “The other 10 offences are associated offences and therefore will be included in the hearing to be heard in front of the Crown Court.”

Bitterne Park School have since released a letter to parents in relation to the arrest. A spokesperson for the school referred to the situation as "difficult news." The letter stated: "Wiltshire Police have been investigating a former teacher at our school in relation to their conduct towards young people. Today, they are sending out a press release to the media to announce that former PE teacher, Bronwyn (preferred name Bronwen) James, faces charges relating to sexual activity and communications against three children, over a three year period."

"Bronwen James taught PE at Bitterne Park School until she left in 2022 and then at Hardenhuish School in Chippenham." It continued: "At the request of the police, we have not shared this information earlier to avoid impacting the outcome of the investigation. However, now that Ms James has been charged and is due to appear in court on July 9, I wanted to provide you with information."

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The school has encouraged both parents and students to follow police guidance and avoid making any assumptions or speculating about the situation. They continued: "This news may impact individual students differently and we have been working with the local authority to ensure that when students arrive in school, support is available for any student who may want to talk through any concerns. Students are able to talk to their tutor, members of the pastoral team or any member of staff who they feel supported by at school."

"The police advice is not to comment or speculate on any social media posts as this may impact the legal case as it goes to court. We would ask that you support the police by following this advice. We encourage anyone who has been a victim of child sexual abuse to contact the police on 101 where they can speak with an officer, in confidence."

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Bronwen James was granted bail under strict conditions. She must not contact the three alleged victims and cannot be alone with anyone under 16. Magistrate Stephen Harrison asked her to confirm she understood and repeat the conditions, which she did. During the brief hearing, James, dressed in a cream two-piece outfit, also confirmed her name, date of birth, and address. She was not required to enter any pleas at this stage. Prosecutor Siobhan Oxley represented the Crown, while Joshua Clements acted for the defence. James is scheduled to appear at Salisbury Crown Court on 7 August for a plea and trial preparation hearing.