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Crime Solicitors

Teachers hold “refusal to teach” ballots to exclude violent pupils form schools (7 April 2015)

Date: 07/04/2015
Duncan Lewis, Crime Solicitors, Teachers hold “refusal to teach” ballots to exclude violent pupils form schools

Teachers faced with violent pupils are taking ballots to boycott teaching them.

BBC News reports that in incidences of disruptive behaviour or even violence in the classroom, teachers who are members of the NASUWT teachers' union have held ballots on eight occasions in the last year to boycott teaching them – including cases where a schoolpupil had assaulted a teacher and was allowed to return to school.

In response to the ballots, disruptive or violent pupils were removed or expelled from the school.

The number of teachers’ “refusal to teach" ballots across the UK has risen for the third successive year, from three in 2012, four in 2013 to eight in 2014.

The NASUWT held its annual conference in Cardiff over the Easter weekend and union leader Chris Keates said that the numbers reflect “worsening” behaviour problems among schoolpupils.

During the week that Spanish teacher Ann McGuire was stabbed by sixth form pupil Will Cornick last year, it is estimated that there was one incident every day involving a knife being drawn in a school – a total of 37 incidents in just one week.

The NASUWT union was told of one 16-year-old pupil in the west of England, who had assaulted pupils, teachers, the head teacher and the police at his school when officers were called in to assist. The pupil was later educated “off site”, the conference heard.

The union had asked its members to respond to a questionnaire about violent or disruptive behaviour in schools.

Around 3,500 teachers responded – and around 75% said there was a “widespread behaviour problem in schools today”.

The union will discuss a motion on how inconsistency in applying the rules of behaviour may affect pupils.

Schools reform minister Nick Gibb said:

“The Conservative Party is committed to giving schools the backing they need to tackle poor behaviour.

“That's why we've made it easier to search pupils, brought back same-day detentions – and clarified teachers' power to use reasonable force.

“We've also made sure that a head teacher's ability to exclude pupils isn't undermined by external bodies.

“As a result, three-quarters of teachers now rate behaviour in their school as good or better.”

A spokesman for the Liberal Democrats added:

“It is vital that teachers have the resources they need to manage behaviour and support those children who need extra help.

“This is exactly why in government, Liberal Democrats protected school budgets and introduced the pupil premium – extra money to support the children most likely to struggle in class.”

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