Paul Stuart Adams

A retired teacher from Workington, Paul Stuart Adams, has been found guilty of additional historic child sex crimes against four victims, marking a second prosecution following his earlier conviction for abusing two teenage boys.

Adams, aged 78, had previously served part of a seven-year jail term for child sex offences. The new allegations came to light in 2022 when four victims, who had read newspaper reports about his earlier trial, contacted the police to disclose previously unknown offending. All incidents were historic in nature, involving three former pupils from his time teaching drama and one teenager he mentored in music-related activities. None of the victims knew each other, as highlighted by prosecutor Tim Evans during the trial at Carlisle Crown Court.

The jury, consisting of nine women and three men, deliberated for just over five hours before returning unanimous guilty verdicts on five charges: three counts of indecent assault, one count of sexual assault, and one count of paying a child for sexual services. The trial lasted nine days, during which Evans detailed specific incidents. In one case, a victim aged 13 or 14 was sexually assaulted after delivering a note to Adams at school and discovering him performing a sex act in a secluded area. Weeks later, Adams detained the boy after class, accusing him of being a 'dirty, dirty boy' before assaulting him. The victim subsequently felt shaken and sick, retreating to a school toilet.

• Another incident involved Adams engineering a situation to spank a boy in a school setting, reflecting his sexual interest in such acts.
• All four victims suffered lasting trauma from the abuse.

Judge Michael Fanning remanded Adams in custody until his sentencing hearing the following week, informing him to prepare for a return to prison. Adams, whose former address was Banklands in Workington, denied all wrongdoing throughout the proceedings. He is already listed on the national Sex Offender Register due to his prior convictions. A more detailed report of the case was expected to appear in the subsequent edition of the News & Star, with sentencing scheduled for the Friday after the verdict on 29 January.