Former Lancing College teacher admits child sex offences

Nick Baldock, who taught history at Lancing College from 2017 to 2022, pleaded guilty to nine charges at a short hearing in Crawley today.

The Cambridge and Yale graduate, who lived on site at the college, spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth, address and give guilty pleas.

A district judge heard a 177-page report had been compiled on Baldock who could be jailed for more than five years when he is sentenced at Lewes Crown Court next month.

The 46-year-old admitted sexual assault by touching of a male student aged over 16 at the college.

Lancing College, where Baldock was a teacher (Image: The Argus)

Baldock also admitted sharing indecent images of children using Telegram and WhatsApp, sharing details of college pupils including images and downloading indecent images of children between 2021 and 2022.

He was arrested in December, 2022 and is no longer employed at the college.

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Prosecutor Maria Goptareva told Crawley Magistrates Court Baldock, now a convicted sex offender, committed the offences in his capacity as a teacher at Lancing College.

"The sexual assault is by touching of a student,” she said.

"The sexual assault would fall into the category of an abuse of trust.”

District judge Jack Triggs said Baldock would be required to supply his details for the sex offender register within three days.

"You've pleaded guilty and it will be for Lewes Crown Court to sentence you," he said.

Baldock, who now lives in Lincolnshire, replied: "Thank you."

In his LinkedIn profile, Baldock says he studied at Yale University from 2003 to 2009 after getting a history BA from Cambridge.

His profile states: "Studied many and varied periods of history and quietly despaired of academia before producing the discursive, over-written but nonetheless interesting dissertation entitled 'The Religious Imagination in British Popular Fiction and Society, 1900-1945,' under the guidance of Jay Winter (author of 'The Great War and the British People', etc)."

Baldock at Crawley Magistrates's court (Image: Sussex News and Pictures)

He also studied at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy before returning to the UK where he also taught history at King Edward's School in Birmingham for six months in 2016.

Baldock was also an actor with Madcap Theatre Productions in 2013.

Baldock pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault on a male over 16, two offences of publishing an obscene article using Telegram and WhatsApp, three charges of sharing pupil profile pictures through WhatsApp and three charges of downloading Category A, B and C indecent images of a child. Category A indecent images are the most severe.