Seriously injured Scottish teacher given £180,000 compensation as school violence crisis fuels huge rise in payouts

Figures from teaching union show 40 per cent of highlighted claims linked to assaults

Violence in Scottish schools has led to a huge rise in the amount of compensation paid out to teachers, with one assault victim receiving £180,000 after sustaining a serious injury in an attack last year.

New figures from the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) showed a total of £541,499 was paid out to the union’s members in personal injury claims in 2023, up from £295,597 secured for workplace injuries in 2022.In a single settlement, a teacher was paid out £180,000 after a school assault left them with a serious injury.

In another case, a teacher who was assaulted on three separate occasions was awarded £28,469.

A school teacher looking stressed next to piles of classroom books. PA/PA Wire

Meanwhile, a teacher punched in the face by a pupil, resulting in a hairline fracture to the jaw, was paid £6,020, while another teacher who was headbutted, causing damage to the teeth, received £4,500.The EIS also highlighted the case of another teacher who was paid £1,500 after they were assaulted trying to break up a fight between pupils. The union said the staff member sustained a laceration to the temple which needed stitches.

The other seven claims last year were a result of accident and health claims, including £135,000 for a member who broke their ankle in two places and £100,000 for a slip on a wet floor.

The figures released by the EIS, Scotland’s largest teaching union, have emerged just two days after an FOI request by The Scotsman showed how distraught parents, carers, school staff and even pupils were contacting senior politicians several times a week last year with “heart-breaking” stories of the way their families had been impacted by attacks.

The 109 pages of communications sent to ministers, mostly by members of the public, often contained shocking video footage of attacks.

Andrea Bradley, EIS general secretary, said teachers have been left with no option but to take further strike action.

One parent outlined allegations of sexual assault, and another described a primary pupil who was “dragged” into school toilets before being kicked unconscious.

There was also an account of a girl who was “lured” to a changing room to be attacked while others filmed, while another incident was described as one which “could easily have left the pupil for dead”.

The Government arranged a series of summits to discuss the trend last year, although ministers have been criticised for failing to produce a detailed action plan before the end of the year.EIS general secretary Andrea Bradley said the rise in violent incidents was “worrying”.“Pursuing compensation for teachers injured or assaulted in our schools is never a pleasant task, but it is an area of work where the EIS will always give its all on behalf of our members,” she said.“No one deserves to suffer injury or assault in their workplace, which is why local authorities – as the employers of teachers – have a legal duty of care to ensure a safe working environment for all school staff.“Worryingly, as the rise in violent incidents in recent years can attest, our schools are currently not as safe as they should be for staff and pupils.”Ms Bradley said personal injury settlements would typically have involved “slips, trips and falls” in previous years.“This year, however, more than 40% of the settlements that we are highlighting were because teachers had been assaulted in their place of work,” she added.“Local authorities and the Scottish Government must take urgent action to make our schools properly safe, and to ensure that all staff and pupils can work without fear of assault or injury.”The EIS is calling for additional resources, including additional staffing, to support pupils who are likely to exhibit distressed or violent behaviour.A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Scotland’s schools should be safe learning environments for all – violence and abusive behaviour towards pupils or staff is completely unacceptable.“The Education Secretary has been clear that more needs to be done to address incidents of behaviour, which is why the Scottish Government is bringing forward a National Action Plan – this will set out a range of actions needed at both local and national level.“We are committed to working with trade union partners on the development of this plan.“On safety more widely, local authorities have a statutory responsibility to protect pupils and teachers. Where a local authority does not comply with health and safety legislation, it is for the Health and Safety Executive to determine what enforcement action is appropriate and proportional to the health and safety risk.”