Four in five headteachers have suffered abuse from schoolchildren’s parents in the last year, a new survey has found.
The mistreatment includes physical violence, verbal attacks, spitting and online trolling. One victim told Sky News she had her face slapped and was “threatened with murder over the phone”.
Some 82% of school leaders said they had been abused by pupils’ parents, according to the survey by the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT).
Verbal abuse was the most common form of mistreatment (85% reported this), followed by threatening behaviour (68%), online abuse (46%), and discriminatory language, including racism, sexism, or homophobia (22%).
Also, 10% of respondents in the survey, covering England, Wales and Northern Ireland, said they had been physically attacked by a parent.
Abusive incidents ‘not isolated’
The abusive episodes are not isolated. More than a third (35%) of school leaders said they endure such incidents at least once a month, while 16% reported experiencing parental abuse on a weekly basis.
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The situation appears to be escalating, with 86% of respondents saying parental abuse has increased in the past three years – and 37% stating it has “greatly” increased.
Debra Walker, a former headteacher and chief executive of a multi-academy trust in the North of England, told Sky News: “I myself, in my first headship was slapped across the face. I was threatened with murder over the telephone.”
Ms Walker said some parents were angry after her schools “decided not to dress up for World Book Day”.
“There was an absolute outcry and violence, with violent outbursts (from parents) in the yard.
“A Facebook hate campaign began because we wouldn’t dress up.”
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School leaders targeted in online parent groups
Online abuse has become a major concern, with school leaders being trolled on social media platforms and targeted in parent groups on networks like Facebook and WhatsApp.
Some have even been subjected to coordinated hate campaigns, harassment and intimidation online.
Ms Walker said: “Parents being derogatory [towards teachers online] and getting 20 likes if they’re swearing about a member of staff, maybe that’s leaking into real life.
“It’s coming out of the screen and actually into the [school] yard, and perhaps the braveness and boldness that is seen in social media is leaking into our face-to-face interactions.”
The findings have raised serious concerns about the safety and wellbeing of those leading schools.
NAHT officials have called for urgent action, warning that abuse against educators must not be normalised.
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NAHT general secretary Paul Whiteman told The Guardian: “The vast majority of parents are very supportive of schools and in most cases the relationship between school and home is really positive.
“However, in recent years we have heard of a worrying increase in the amount of abuse school leaders are experiencing.
“It causes enormous distress for school leaders, their staff, and sometimes pupils, and is even contributing to decisions by good people to leave the profession at a time when schools are facing a severe recruitment and retention crisis.”
The survey gathered responses from 1,642 NAHT members.
With the growing pressures on schools and heightened tensions over educational policies, school leaders are now calling for greater protections to ensure they can do their jobs without fear of harassment or violence.
