Teaching assistants attacked

Half of all teaching assistants experienced violence or abuse at work in the last year, research by UNISON public sector union has revealed.

The survey found that 49% of over 500 UK teaching assistants questioned had experienced violence or abuse in the last year, 7% had experienced violence requiring medical attention and 18% had experienced violence not requiring medical attention.

Christina McAnea, UNISON’s head of education, said: “Teaching assistants work long hours, often on low pay. It is shameful that they should also be expected to put themselves at risk of being attacked or abused.”

UNISON is calling for better training to help teaching assistants cope with attacks at work and more comprehensive risk assessments.