Childcare team leader who pinned woman to sofa in rape attack struck off

A childcare team leader who raped a young woman at his home after earlier meeting her in a pub has been struck off.

Callum Mullen, 43, locked a door at the property in Bonnyrigg, in Midlothian, and attacked the 22-year-old on January 3, 2023.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard last year that the woman was pinned to a sofa during the attack.

She said that during the assault, she told her attacker that he was hurting her and added: “I told him to stop.”

Mullen had denied raping the woman and told the court he did not force himself on her. He said: “I understand consent and it was consensual sex.”

He was found guilty by a majority verdict of raping the woman.

Following his conviction, the Scottish Social Services Council struck Mullen from its register.

Mullen, who had worked with children in care and was a team leader to a staff of 15, was previously suspended from his role in Edinburgh.

In its decision, the SSSC determined: “The behaviour which led to your conviction was sexually abusive,
exploitative and amounted to a significant and serious abuse of trust.

“Your behaviour is likely to have caused the complainer to suffer emotional, physical and psychological harm.

“Your actions are fundamentally incompatible with professional registration and identify you as unfit to continue working as part of a caring and responsible profession such as social services.”

The removal order came into effect on April 30.