TEACHERS are being left vulnerable to violence and abuse from pupils by local authority failings, the NASUWT union said today, urging the Scottish government to implement an agreed national system for reporting incidents.

Figures obtained by the BBC point to a staggering 35,500 reported assaults on teachers in Scotland in 2024-25, compared with just over 22,500 in 2022-23.

Last week, the teaching union’s Scottish conference demanded that compliance with the Scottish government’s National Action Plan on Relationships and Behaviour be made mandatory, with schools and councils obliged to publish robust data on incidents and behaviour policies.

Warning that the figures could be “the tip of the iceberg,” NASUWT Scotland national official Mike Corbett said: “We know that teachers are often dissuaded from reporting incidents and that there are major questions about the variability and reliability of data.

“If we cannot see the true scale and nature of the behaviour challenges in our schools, we cannot deal adequately with the problem — this is why the introduction of a nationally agreed reporting system that is mandatory across all schools and local authorities is urgently needed.”

Two years after the publication of the action plan, NASUWT says many teachers remain unaware of it.

NASUWT general secretary Matt Wrack said: “It is clear that in too many schools nothing has changed and that, in some instances, teachers are continuing to be left exposed to regular verbal and physical attacks from pupils

“We are calling for stronger mechanisms to be put in place to ensure greater accountability and joined-up practices across schools, local authorities and the government, so that there is consistency of practice.

“Classroom teachers and unions must also be involved in the review and redesign of school behaviour policies, including in jointly agreeing clear, consistently applied consequences for poor behaviour.”

A Scottish government spokesperson told the BBC: “The second annual progress report on delivery of the action plan shows that good progress is being made to deliver all 20 actions within the plan.

“As part of the plan, a working group is developing guidance to support improvements in the recording and monitoring of violent incidents across local authorities and schools.”