School violence ‘definitely unacceptable’, Swinney says after union claim

Violence in schools is “definitely unacceptable”, First Minister John Swinney has insisted, after a trade union suggested abuse had now become accepted in classrooms.

GMB said some school support staff were wearing protective clothing to work to deal with physical abuse from pupils.

The union said data it obtained through freedom of information requests showed a 20% rise in assaults and abuse in schools last year.

GMB said there was a “dramatic escalation in violence and threatening behaviour” in schools across Scotland, including Glasgow where the number of incidents rose by 30% in 2024 to 6,081.

In Shetland, 1,794 incidents were recorded involving council staff, up 81% on 2023. In Stirling there were 836 violent or threatening incidents in schools, up 16%, the data shows.

“Many support staff no longer get ready for work but ready for trouble,” GMB Scotland’s Keir Greenaway said.

He told the Daily Record: “Our members are being hurt and abused on a scale that would be absolutely unacceptable in any workplace. Any workplace, apparently, but our classrooms.

“Many support staff tie up their hair to stop it being pulled and they are wearing long-sleeved, protective vests beneath their clothes to protect them from scratches and bites.

“That is the daily reality for many of our members whose fears have been ignored for years while the authorities wring their hands but do little more.”

Asked about the comments, the First Minister said the Government was working with councils and unions to protect school staff.

He told the PA news agency: “Violence is completely unacceptable in any part of our society and most definitely unacceptable in our schools.

“So the Government has in place the guidance that we worked on with trade unions and with local authorities to protect staff and pupils in our schools.

“Our schools should be safe places of learning and of work for individuals, and I want to make sure that guidance is followed, and we work collaboratively with trade unions and with local authorities to make sure that’s the case.”

He added: “Trade unions and teachers have worked with the Government in producing the guidance that’s now in place to ensure that schools are safe, that violence is not tolerated, and that the appropriate measures are in place to tackle violence in our schools where it is completely unacceptable.

“Those measures are in place and the Government will work with trade unions and local authorities to make sure that’s the case.”

Figures released in October through a freedom of information request suggested Scotland had the most violent classrooms in the UK.

Some 490 reports of serious injuries to school staff in Scotland were caused by violence between 2014 and 2024, higher than England and Wales when adjusted for populations size.

Unions have warned that schools are becoming increasingly less safe for teachers and pupils, while a spate of violent incidents being recorded and shared online has also prompted concern.

Critics have warned the Scottish Government’s strategy for dealing with unruly pupils is too lenient.

The Commission on School Reform, set up by the think tank Enlighten, has urged ministers to issue new national guidance for schools which “lifts the pressure” on head teachers not to use “serious sanctions” against pupils when needed.

Its report argued that “schools should not be made to feel that the use of exclusion is contrary to national policy and likely to incur official disapproval”.

It called on the Government to issue guidance which “recognises the need for sanctions in maintaining a good learning environment in schools” and which also “lifts the pressure on head teachers not to use more serious sanctions such as suspension”.