The concerning finding has come from a poll of almost 15,000 UNISON members working in schools across the UK.
The survey report, entitled Bad Form: Behaviour in Schools, also reveals that 76 per cent of teaching assistants have seen violent behaviour at their schools within the last 12 months, with 53 per cent having experienced physical violence themselves.
Support staff included in UNISON’s survey range from school business managers, technicians and librarians to teaching assistants, admin workers, cleaners and catering staff.
It is teaching assistants that bear the brunt of violent behaviour, according to the findings, with UNISON members reporting a barrage of verbal threats and abuse – mostly from pupils (98 per cent), but some from parents (five per cent).
Incidents included being kicked, punched, slapped, head-butted and insulted verbally by children. Verbal threats had been received by 53 per cent of teaching assistants – with a quarter having been threatened by parents.
UNISON says that this worsening behaviour is a direct result of cuts to staffing levels and resources in schools.
Furthermore, 19 per cent of the support staff reported their school did not have an adequate behaviour management policy, while many said their school either did not provide adequate training to address behavioural problems (27 per cent) or had never offered such training (24 per cent).
Cuts in staff who deal with behaviour management were reported by 11 per cent over the past year, either through redundancies or posts being left vacant when someone leaves.
Jon Richards, UNISON’s head of education, said: “This paints a grim picture of the way cuts and a general lack of cash are having a huge effect on school support staff.
“Staff should not have to put up with violence and abuse in the classroom. These are not just occasional incidents. Abuse is becoming a regular and alarming occurrence. A lack of resources means schools are unable to address behavioural issues. Dealing with these problems can dominate the day when time could be better spent supporting learning.”
UNISON has published a guide, entitled Managing Difficult Behaviour in Schools written by Tom Bennett, the government’s advisor. This can be downloaded via http://bit.ly/29fcRJ7