How maths teacher Rebecca Joynes ruined her ‘dream career’ as she’s found guilty of sex with two schoolboys
17 May 2024, 17:37
A teacher has been found guilty of having sex with two teenage schoolboys and having a baby with one of them while on bail.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
Maths teacher Rebecca Joynes was found guilty of having sex with two teenage schoolboys and having a baby with one of them while on bail - here’s what we know about her.
Joynes, 30, previously told the jury that she had ruined her 'dream job' with her 'mistakes', but was found guilty on multiple counts on Friday.
Known as Becky, she is believed to have enjoyed a stable and supportive upbringing with her parents, who attended each day of the trial this month.
She was pictured arriving arm-in-arm with her father at one of the trial dates earlier this week.
Joynes is a former cheerleader who was raised in a £500,000 semi-detached house in the Wirral town of Heswall.
She attended Pensby High School, which sports the motto ‘Care, respect, inspire’.
Her parents, Stuart, 54, and Mel, 55, launched a successful tea room business, Isabelles, over 10 years ago. Both Joynes and her younger sister worked at times at the family business.
She studied for a degree in sport and exercise across the Mersey estuary at Liverpool John Moores University.
It was at university where she joined the cheerleading club and later decided to pursue a career teaching maths, according to reports.
She then completed a two-year programme with Teach First, a charity aimed at tackling 'educational disadvantage' as well as a postgraduate course in teaching maths.
Aged 24, she landed a full-time job at a school in Greater Manchester in 2018 - unnamed to protect the identity of her victims who have lifelong anonymity.
A childhood friend said Joynes was “always very quiet”, adding they were “shocked and very upset” for her family, the MailOnline reports.
They said: “I would never have thought she would be capable of something like this.”
Another person who knew Joynes at West Kirby Gymnastics Club told The Times: “She was a quiet and polite girl who never caused any trouble.”
Joynes was in a relationship with her ex-boyfriend from the age of 15, before they broke up nine years later - before the pandemic.
During her trial, Joynes said she felt ‘lonely’ following the breakdown of their relationship and the restrictions brought on by the pandemic.
She groomed one boy, 15, with a £345 Gucci belt and slept with him twice at her Salford flat.
She then had sex with a 16-year-old boy on 30 different occasions before having a baby with him while she was out on bail.
She was found guilty of four counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust at Manchester Crown Court today after a trial lasting two weeks.
She will be sentenced on July 4.
She groomed Boy A by text after targeting him in her maths class - giving the boy, 15, the first ten digits of her phone number and asking him to guess the last one.
After texting each other she asked him if he wanted to meet up.
The pair went on to have sex twice at her flat. Boy A told her: “I hope to God you don’t get pregnant.”
Police began an investigation in October 2021 and she was arrested and bailed on the condition she did not contact any child under 18.
But she went on to contact Boy B who was also aged just 15.
She sent him a note that read: “Every inch of you is perfect and you are all I ever dream about.”
They went on to have sex multiple times.
She had a baby with the boy but the girl was taken from her after an emergency court hearing and the child is now in the care of the boy’s teenage father.
The families of Boy A and Boy B were in court to hear the verdicts and some burst into tears and audibly gasped.
Joynes has been granted bail until her sentencing.
Judge Kate Cornell said: “You know you must be here at court for sentence, and have to serve whatever sentence I pass.
"On the understanding that you realise that, I am prepared to grant you bail on the same conditions. You must see probation before sentencing."
“There is a baby involved here who has done nothing wrong - you must be under no illusions on what is going to happen. Bail can be granted on the same conditions as before,” she added.
Joynes began crying as she was granted bail.
Jane Wilson, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West, said: “Rebecca Joynes is a sexual predator.
“Joynes was entrusted with the responsibility of teaching and safeguarding children. She abused her position to groom and ultimately sexually exploit schoolboys. Her behaviour has had a lasting impact on them.
“The CPS worked with Greater Manchester Police to build a strong case to put before the jury, including eyewitness testimony, phone evidence showing the messages sent by Joynes and CCTV footage.
“I would like to thank the victims for supporting the prosecution. Joynes will now face the consequences of her actions.”
