(Image: Getty Images)
The number of attacks on secondary school teachers in Edinburgh has more than doubled, rising by 115 per cent over the last four years.
A Freedom of Information (FOI) request seen by The Herald shows that attacks rose from 38 in 2022/23 to 82 in 2025/26.
In total, 210 attacks were recorded over the four-year period, including 39 instances of teachers being hit with a thrown object and 14 cases of an item being used as a weapon.
In 2022/23, 38 incidents were recorded, including 30 physical assaults. This number declined to 29 incidents in 2023/24, 21 of which were physical assaults, but jumped to 61 incidents the following year, including 45 physical assaults.
By contrast, in 2025/26, the most recent reporting period, 82 attacks were recorded, including 58 physical assaults, seven assaults involving an item being used as a weapon, and 17 instances of a teacher being hit with a thrown object.
Several councillors on City of Edinburgh Council’s education committee told The Herald that the local authority must take action to deal with the rise in violence.
The number of attacks on teachers in Edinburgh secondary schools has doubled. (Image: Archive)
Scottish Green councillor Steve Burgess said: “A significant increase in attacks on teachers is of very serious concern. No teachers should be going to school with the expectation that they might be attacked.
“This Labour-run council really needs to get on top of this issue as a matter of urgency. I'll be raising this with Councillor Dalgleish, the convener of education.”
“I am deeply concerned by these figures,” Conservative councillor Marie-Clair Munro said, noting that she had raised the issue of school violence at full council meetings on multiple occasions.
“Teachers are there to educate our children, not to spend their working day managing extreme, intimidating or threatening behaviour.
The Herald has previously reported that 3,220 incidents of physical violence, aggression or abuse were reported by teachers and classroom assistants during the 2025/26 academic year.
Teachers working across the local authority’s 23 secondary schools reported 370 incidents, while classroom assistants recorded 63 incidents.
“Every pupil has the right to learn in a safe and orderly classroom, and persistent disruption must not be allowed to undermine the education of others,” Councillor Munro added.
“We need to restore confidence in classroom discipline and ensure that headteachers have the authority and support to take appropriate and proportionate action when serious incidents occur, including exclusion where justified and in accordance with council policy.”
Marie-Clair Munro is a Conservative councillor. (Image: Scottish Conservatives)
Around 40 per cent of the physical assaults recorded involve students with additional support needs.
According to the FOI request, 64 physical assaults were committed by “a person with additional support needs and/or disability” over the four year span, out of a total of 154.
“Not every incident of serious violence or persistent disruption can be explained by additional support needs,” Councillor Munro remarked.
“We cannot expect teachers and support staff to manage serious violence and persistent disruption without the training, resources and backing they need. The council must take responsibility for ensuring schools have the staffing, specialist support and clear procedures necessary to keep everyone safe.”
An amendment submitted by Councillor Munro at the last full council meeting called for improved incident reporting and more support for head teachers in responding to attacks.
“Having secured cross-party support for practical measures at full council in September, I now want to see those commitments translated into action, with clear evidence that violence is being reduced, staff are being protected and headteachers have the support they need to maintain safe and orderly classrooms,” she said.
SNP councillor Euan Hyslop. (Image: Supplied)
SNP group leader Lesley Macinnes said that her councillors had been campaigning for safer schools for several years.
"The SNP group wants City of Edinburgh Council to do everything in its power to make sure teachers and support staff are protected from violence at work and have campaigned to bring Unison's violence at work charter into council policy,” she said.
“A 2024 report found that although the council had not signed up to the charter, they do have identical policies that help to ensure the protection of all employees.
“This obviously wasn't sufficient to protect our teaching and school support staff so Councillor Hyslop brought a second motion to full council in September 2026 which stated that no employee should face violence or aggression in their place of work.
“It also agreed that the Education Directorate will work closely with unions to prevent and reduce violence by strengthening preventative measures, ensuring appropriate staffing levels and ratios, provide staff with appropriate training in de-escalation, moving and handling, and other measures designed to prevent and reduce workplace injuries and assaults.”
“The scale of violence in Edinburgh is extremely disturbing," said Lib Dem councillor Lewis Younie.
“The SNP in the Scottish Government have dished out guidance but none of it is making a difference to teachers on the ground.
“While teachers are going to their work feeling frightened and demoralised, parents are worried about the safety of their children.
"Councils need more support from the government to deal with this growing cataclysm."
Read more:
- 'We’re being attacked at work': Why violence in Scottish schools is getting worse
- 'Education in Scotland is broken': EIS call on action to address school violence
- I went on TV to discuss school violence – here's the only way to solve it
Asked to comment on the rise in assaults, Councillor James Dalgleish, the local authority’s education convener, said the council had a “zero-tolerance approach to abuse” in schools.
“Any reports of these incidents are taken extremely seriously,” he said.
“We offer training to teachers and support staff working in our schools where required, to ensure that they are equipped to deal with any instances of behaviours of concern in an appropriate way.
“In addition to supporting staff when this does occur, we have extensive programmes to promote positive behaviour and to manage behaviours of concern in school, so we can try and reduce the number of incidents.
“Our focus is on getting it right for Edinburgh’s children and staff.”