The first of the Scottish Government's summits on pupil behaviour took place in Edinburgh on 5th September 2023.
The meeting focused on recording and reporting and Jacqui Church, our representative from the Education Committee, made the following points:
- Violence in schools must be seen firmly in the context of health and safety in the workplace
- Culture change is needed to see a departure from a fear of reporting and the associated blame rhetoric to one of honesty and support for teachers
- Teachers need time away from the classroom after such incidents to recover
- Reporting must be firmly connected to action, with the resources attached, to inform next steps and effect change
- Current reporting systems are inefficient, inaccessible and are a driver of workload, as such they act as a barrier to reporting
- Teachers need to feel safe in their place of work and steps should be taken to mitigate the impact of distressed behaviour on all pupils.
The Cabinet Secretary acknowledged that teachers should be supported in recording and reporting and indicated that she would give careful consideration to the feedback given. The next summit will take place on Wednesday, 25th October 2023.
