A 65-year-old man from Bexhill has been found guilty of multiple sexual offences against a former pupil at a secondary school in East Sussex.

Steven Hardie, residing in Woodsgate Park, faced prosecution at Lewes Crown Court on allegations including two counts of rape, four counts of indecent assault, and two charges of indecency involving a child.

The jury returned guilty verdicts on the rape and assault charges, with an acquittal recorded on one indecency charge.

Court proceedings established that the crimes occurred during his tenure as a science instructor at Bexhill High School, which subsequently became known as Mulberry Academy Bexhill.

The period of abuse spanned from 1991 until 2007.

Officers from Sussex Police received information in 2021 suggesting that Hardie had engaged in grooming and sexual exploitation of students during his time at the educational establishment.

Following this intelligence, investigators examined electronic equipment belonging to Hardie, uncovering explicit communications exchanged with a pupil who attended the school while he was employed there.

Detectives subsequently made contact with the recipient of those messages, who is now a woman in her mid-thirties.

She detailed experiences of sexual mistreatment commencing when she was 15 years old.

She further disclosed that Hardie raped her on two separate occasions after she had completed her education at the institution.

It emerged during the investigation that Hardie had previously been dismissed from the school after receiving a police caution relating to the grooming of a separate female student.

The current convictions concern a different victim.

Following his 2021 arrest, Hardie faced additional charges encompassing two rape allegations, four indecent assault counts, and three indecency offences involving a minor.

The jury convicted him on all but the solitary indecency count.

Hardie remains in custody pending his sentencing hearing, which is scheduled to take place at Lewes Crown Court on 26 October.

Detective Constable Rebecca Wilde commented that Hardie had leveraged his authoritative role to manipulate a teenage girl for personal sexual purposes.

She noted that the victim, now an adult, had contributed significantly to ensuring her perpetrator faced legal consequences.

Wilde expressed appreciation for her cooperation in revisiting the distressing events from her youth and acknowledged the school’s assistance throughout the inquiry.

She encouraged any individuals who have experienced sexual offences to contact authorities, emphasising that support and pursuit of justice would be provided regardless of the time elapsed.