The head teacher at Amsterdam’s prestigious 4e Gymnasium secondary school has been suspended after telling the school board he was being investigated for the possession of child pornography.

The head teacher, who has not been named in Dutch media coverage, admitted in a letter to parents that he had downloaded child porn onto his home computer.

‘I am aware that I have been reckless and immoral,’ he wrote. ‘I have never done anything indecent with a child or young person, within or outside school.’ A copy of the letter is in the hands of the Parool newspaper.

The man’s lawyer Bart Swier said he is devastated to have been suspended and that he hopes the letter will allow people to put the matter in proportion.

It is unclear exactly what the head teacher has downloaded. His home was raided by police last week and he will be questioned in the coming weeks.

The 4e Gymnasium is a relatively new school located in the west of the city on the edge of the port area and has 740 pupils. Gymnasiums in the Netherlands are highly selective schools which include Greek and Latin in the curriculum.