TEACHERS in Wales demanded a national statutory framework for reporting, recording and responding to violence against school staff at the weekend’s NASUWT Cymru conference in Cardiff.

They agreed to push the Welsh government to deal with what the union claimed was a “public health and safety crisis.”

Wales national officer Neil Butler said: “Last year, NASUWT Cymru asked local authorities across Wales for the data they hold on violence in schools.

“We were shocked to discover that not all record consistent information on the types of abuses that teachers endure or the number of incidents that occur in schools.

“A national framework would not only improve safety in schools, it would make teachers feel more visible and validate their concerns.

“The government must act now in response to what is, in our view, a public health and safety crisis.”

Each local authority records and responds to incidents of violence in schools differently, the conference heard.

Union data suggests teachers in Wales are the most likely group in Britain to have seriously considered leaving teaching in the last year.

NASUWT general secretary Matt Wrack said: “Teachers, like all employees, are entitled to work in a safe environment.

“But teachers in Wales continue to feel they are putting their physical and mental wellbeing at risk when they walk into school every morning and they often feel powerless to deal with dangerous pupil behaviour.

“The stress, anxiety and sometimes physical injury teachers endure due to abuse from pupils is forcing them to consider leaving the profession.

“Employers should be looking for ways to protect teachers and make them feel valued; instead, it seems some are looking for ways to ignore the problem.”

The Welsh government told the Star that any form of violence or abuse in schools is completely unacceptable.

“We will work with schools, local authorities and health and social care services to develop a framework that links behaviour, attendance and wellbeing, which will include ensuring incidents are dealt with, recorded and reported in a consistent way,” a spokesman said.