Violence against school staff doubles in a single year

NSW schools have effectively become a battleground and battered teachers are the war-wounded, data on school staff compensation claims has revealed.

Research showed violence was becoming more frequent and more intense, often requiring hospitalisation of school staff.

VIOLENCE is rising in NSW schools, with a record number of teachers and administration staff last year lodging assault-related compensation claims.

Workers compensation claims for school staff more than doubled last year, jumping from 17 claims in 2016 to 41, data obtained by The ­Saturday Telegraph reveals.

This year is on track to be another big year — with records revealing there have been 15 assaults logged so far.

Australian Catholic University Associate Professor Philip Riley said NSW was already the worst state in the country when it came to school violence and the situation is getting worse.

Prof Riley said he believed children were mimicking the behaviour of violent parents.

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“Kids are seeing parents modelling this sort of behaviour. We have a much more ingrained problem with violence in this country than we’re caring to admit,” he said.

Prof Riley said his research showed violence was becoming more frequent and more intense, often requiring hospitalisation of school staff.

“It is everything; biting, scratching, kicking, throwing things,” he said.

“We have too many kids in schools who don’t have good impulse control and we have parents who don’t have good impulse control.”

In 2016 a Penrith classroom was locked down for 1½ hours when a student armed himself with a sharp object and threatened a teacher.

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A NSW Department of Education spokesman said they worked closely with students flagged as violent to modify their behaviour.

“The department has implemented a range of strategies and initiatives to manage and support employees affected by a workplace injury,” he said.

“The programs implemented under the strategy have focused on injury prevention … support and recovery at work for staff.”