An early childhood teacher came to work still feeling the effects of alcohol after drinking two litres of wine the night before, and then drank from a hidden bottle of cider while on duty.
The teacher, whose name was suppressed, was censured as a result of the incident, something she felt "great shame and regret for".
The details of what happened at the Alexandra centre have been outlined in a recently released decision from the Teachers' Disciplinary Tribunal.
On November 16, 2023, the teacher was working in a room for learners aged three to four at the centre.
The night before, she had drunk two one-litre bottles of wine and was "still feeling the effects of alcohol consumption" when she arrived at work.
With her was a 750ml drink bottle containing cider, which she hid on top of a cupboard in the art bay, out of reach of any children.
In her statement to the Tribunal, the woman said she had never set out to drink at work that day, but found a bottle of cider in her car boot. She said bringing it into work was “an impulsive decision that I deeply regret”.
Between 9am and 11.20am, she returned to the art bay intermittently to drink from the bottle. According to the Tribunal, she drank around 600ml of cider throughout the morning.
A colleague noticed something was up when a child was sat on her knee "for a cuddle". They noticed her speech had become slurred, she had red and glassy eyes, and wasn't making sense.
Another colleague also noticed the slurred speech, saying she was "apparently sleepy" with a child sitting on her lap.
When she was questioned, she denied being drunk. She would eventually admit to drinking after allowing her employer to get the cider-containing drink bottle.
She resigned two days later.
The summary of facts shared by the tribunal also noted she had been convicted for driving with excess breath alcohol in 2019, which was considered by the teaching council, which took no further action.
She said she had been "very stressed" at the time, and was feeling pressure at work after her husband was diagnosed with cancer.
In the report, the Complaints Assessment Committee (CAC) said the teacher's actions were "premeditated" and "brought risk to those learners".
"A high level of supervision of children is required in an early childhood care setting," the CAC submitted.
"Counsel submitted that as a consequence of her visible impairment from the effects of alcohol, the respondent’s conduct was likely to affect the well-being of learners, and she did not take appropriate steps to protect learners from harm."
The Tribunal agreed, saying her actions that day amounted to serious misconduct.
It said the alcohol would have impaired her ability to carry out "visual observation, hands-on physical interactions in situations such as mealtimes, play, assisting children to sleep, nappy changes and (as in this case) holding a young child to provide appropriate comfort".
In her own statement to the Tribunal, the teacher said she felt "great shame and regret" over her conduct that day.
She said she had been under a lot of pressure and stress in her personal and work life, with her husband suffering ill health, dealing with finding appropriate treatment. She also had to help care for her daughter's young family. She said she did not ask for help.
She said she was mourning the loss of her teaching career.
The statement said she had not drunk at work or in the morning before this incident, and was a recovering alcoholic engaged in rehabilitation, attending AA meetings.
She said she did not want to continue teaching.
The Tribunal opted not to cancel her registration, instead ordering a censure. It said it had opted for a rehabilitative approach due to her remorse and the steps taken to address her addiction.
She was also ordered to pay $2518 in costs.
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