Prosecutors allege Bronwen James developed a secret relationship with the pupil while teaching at a Southampton secondary school.
WINCHESTER, England — A former physical education teacher is on trial accused of engaging in sexual activity with a 16-year-old pupil after prosecutors said their relationship developed from private messages into meetings away from school. Bronwen James, 30, denies all four charges involving the boy.
James, of Chippenham, Wiltshire, is charged with four counts of sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust. The allegations concern a pupil at Bitterne Park School in Southampton, where James worked as a PE teacher. Prosecutors told Winchester Crown Court that James crossed professional boundaries and used her position as a teacher to develop a sexual relationship with the teenager. James has denied that any sexual relationship occurred.
Prosecutor Edward Culver told jurors that the pupil initially tried to add James on Snapchat and that she declined before later accepting his request. The prosecution alleges their messages became increasingly flirtatious and that the two eventually arranged to meet away from school. In one alleged encounter, Culver said James picked up the teenager and drove with him to Weston Shore in Southampton, where prosecutors say they kissed inside her car.
The prosecution alleges the relationship later progressed to sexual encounters at James’ home. Jurors were told that on one occasion James and the pupil were watching Wimbledon on television before sexual activity occurred. The teenager has alleged that they met for sexual encounters several times. Those claims remain allegations being tested at trial, and James has pleaded not guilty to each of the four charges.
The pupil, whose identity is protected, told the court that he initially viewed the alleged relationship differently than he does now. He also testified that when school officials and child protection workers questioned him, he denied having a sexual relationship with James because he wanted to protect their connection. His testimony forms part of the prosecution case and is subject to challenge by the defense.
Jurors have also heard allegations that James and the pupil communicated regularly and discussed personal feelings. Prosecutors said the boy was identified by a coded contact name in messages and alleged that James expressed affection toward him and talked about a possible future together. The prosecution has presented those claims as evidence that the alleged contact went beyond an ordinary teacher-student relationship.
James denied the allegations in a prepared statement given to police, according to evidence described in court. She denied that the pupil had been inside her home or that she had a sexual relationship with him. The defense position presented in court is that the allegations were fabricated and that another student influenced the boy to make claims against her.
The current proceedings follow charges first brought against James in 2025 involving three young people. At Salisbury Crown Court in August 2025, she pleaded guilty to one count of engaging in sexual communication with a teenage girl while denying 11 other charges then before the court. Those denied allegations included six counts involving two girls, four involving the boy at the center of the current trial and another sexual communication charge. The present Winchester trial is focused on the four allegations involving the boy.
The trial experienced an early interruption this week when the first jury was discharged. The reason for that decision was not detailed in the reports reviewed. Proceedings resumed with a new jury, and evidence from the prosecution and the teenage complainant has continued. The discharge of the original jury did not resolve the charges against James or amount to a finding on the evidence.
Wiltshire Police has confirmed that James previously taught at Bitterne Park School in Southampton and Hardenhuish School in Chippenham. Authorities have not identified the complainants, whose identities are legally protected. The criminal case remains before Winchester Crown Court, and no verdict has been reached on the four charges being tried.
Author note: Last updated September 4, 2026.