'Is this for real?' Russell Findlay asks John Swinney over school violence guidance

Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay has hit out at Scottish Government guidance on tackling violence in schools.

Dubbing the document published this week "tedious, hand-wringing nonsense", Findlay called on ministers to "empower teachers" to take a stricter line on violent and disruptive behaviour.

First Minister John Swinney said Findlay's description of the guidance was incorrect and defended its contents.

He said: “What the guidance is designed to do is to de-escalate situations in schools, ensuring young people can participate in their education – because if young people are unable to participate in their education, they are unlikely to go onto good outcomes in our society and we will simply repeat the difficulties we’ve seen for many years of young people who do not go on to positive destinations.”

Violence in schools has been on the rise in recent years, with teachers reporting more physically violent and abusive behaviour.

The Scottish Government published guidance titled Schools - fostering a positive, inclusive and safe environment, advising teachers how to respond to such behaviour. 

But Findlay said the approach taken by the government had caused “discipline to collapse” in the classroom.

He said: “We need a tougher approach, not laminated cards and inclusive chats, with pupils who are violent or serial disruptors excluded.

“Will John Swinney end the barrage of guidance and please empower the teachers to take a stricter approach?”

The first minister warned against reaching to exclusion as a solution because of possible long-term impacts.

He added: “If a young person is excluded from school, they are not in the safe environment of the school, they are therefore likely to be out on the streets, and therefore potentially able to become involved in some of the criminal activity that Mr Findlay himself has put to me within the last fortnight.”

Teaching union EIS said that while the new guidance recognised the growing problem of violence in schools, extra resources were required to tackle it.

General secretary Andrea Bradley said: “Policies alone will not address the serious issue of violence and aggression we are seeing in schools across Scotland unless they are accompanied by additional funding and dedicated investment in education.

“There need to be a range of interventions, underpinned by resources, which can be adopted to ensure that everyone is safe in school – pupils, teachers and school staff.”