Former chemistry teacher Sally-Anne Bowen has been convicted of indecently assaulting two former pupils at Christ’s College, Finchley, in the late 1980s, with sentencing set for November.

The case has drawn sharply different editorial framing: one report foregrounded an allegation about Bowen’s classroom manner, while another focused on the jury’s finding and the accounts of the two complainants.

A headline from one outlet described Bowen as a teacher who “acted like Sabrina Carpenter video” and referred to pupil relations, putting attention on testimony about her conduct at school.¹ The fuller court account reported that Harrow Crown Court jurors returned majority verdicts on seven counts of indecent assault after more than six hours of deliberation.²

According to that account, the offences involved two boys aged about 14 and 15 when Bowen was in her mid-20s. One complainant said he had sexual contact with her “about 20 or 30 times” over several months and regarded her as his girlfriend at the time.² He told the court he had kept the matter secret because he felt he had to “protect” her, saying she had “drummed it” into him that he could not tell anyone.²

A second complainant described a single kiss in a café. Other former pupils gave evidence about what they considered inappropriate classroom behaviour, including sexualised discussions that went beyond chemistry lessons. Their accounts provided context distinct from the two allegations on which the jury convicted Bowen.²

Bowen denied the allegations during the trial, calling them a “total fabrication”. She also said an undiagnosed medical condition at the time made intercourse difficult and painful.² She is due to be sentenced on November 20.