London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Jul 16, 2025

Culture of sexual abuse in schools toxic for teachers too, says union

Culture of sexual abuse in schools toxic for teachers too, says union

NASUWT leader says some boys’ behaviour not acceptable and no women should feel unsafe in school
Female teachers as well as pupils are victims of a toxic culture of sexual abuse within schools, according to a teaching union leader who said harassment by boys is “the tip of the iceberg” of behaviour that some schools are failing to confront.

Patrick Roach, the general secretary of NASUWT, said his members had made it clear that female teachers face patterns of abuse and harassment similar to those revealed by pupils and students in harrowing detail on the Everyone’s Invited website in recent weeks.

“If there is a toxic culture in any school, it’s not just toxic for students, it’s toxic as well for teachers, for our members,” Roach said.

He said schools’ tolerance of sexist harassment and abuse was likely to affect all women, whether staff or students, and leave them afraid of walking alone in corridors.

“Misogyny and sexism is all too real, all too apparent, whether it’s on the streets and whether women can walk safely at night, or in our schools and whether female teachers and students can feel that they are safe to walk along the corridors without having to think about how they’re dressed, whether they’re walking alone and how they’re going to be treated by pupils, or indeed by colleagues and parents,” Roach said during the union’s annual conference.

He said no women should feel unsafe inside a school, but such experiences were “part and parcel” of the casework his union had to deal with.

Last week the Department for Education initiated a review to be carried out by Ofsted inspectors looking into how schools handle allegations of sexual abuse or harassment, after thousands of complaints aired on Everyone’s Invited of schools taking little or no action.

Roach said that while he didn’t want to “demonise” boys, “there is definitely a situation in which some boys are engaging in practices which, frankly, are not acceptable. And it’s also the case that some schools, some employers, are not doing enough to counteract that” by tackling sexism and misogyny.

“We are seeing, whether it’s so-called banter, sexist name-calling, the use of derogatory terms both in class and online to talk about your teachers, the posting of sexist comments on social media, the belittling of teachers because of their sex or gender,” Roach said.

“We’re seeing this also with regards to our trans members – female trans members – who are particularly experiencing problems around discriminatory behaviour and unacceptable comments. Through to some of the extremes that we’ve pointed to before – cases of upskirting, down-blousing, inappropriate touching, and we fear that’s probably representing, to some degree, the tip of the iceberg.

“So it is very concerning, and certainly we are committed to working with the government, with Ofsted, the NSPCC and with others to address those issues.”

NASUWT members passed a motion at the conference deploring bullying aimed at teachers, and another backing industrial action in schools unwilling to tackle serious pupil indiscipline or abuse.

In his speech, Roach listed what he called “a catalogue of government failures” and U-turns, including the chaos over last summer’s exams, inadequate funding and a “wanton disregard” for measures to keep staff safe working in schools during the pandemic.

Roach also revealed that some school managers were refusing to give staff time off to receive their Covid vaccinations. The union said it had heard of so many teachers being denied leave that it had approached Gavin Williamson, the education secretary, for help.

“I wish it was only a one-off but the number of times that’s come across my desk I cannot begin to tell you. It has been pretty widespread,” said Roach.

He said teachers should not be coerced into working during the summer holidays as part of the government’s catch-up plans for pupils.

“The term catch-up is not helpful. As if somehow the 850m days of learning that’s been lost to pupils in England is going to be made good as a result of two weeks in the summer holiday to catch up? That, frankly, is fanciful,” he said. “But what we do need to do is to assess the learning needs of pupils, and teachers need to be given the time and the support to be able to do that.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
×