Teachers at Boston Haven High Academy strike over pupil 'violence'

Staff at a school in Lincolnshire have walked out over claims they are being left "vulnerable to abuse and violence" from pupils.

Members of teaching union the NASUWT at Haven High Academy in Boston held their first of six days of strike action on Wednesday, 17 April, blaming senior management for "failing to deal with poor pupil behaviour".

The union said there was a "lack of consistent sanctions" for students and support from management.

Anne Thompson, NASUWT national executive member for Lincolnshire, said: "The views and concerns of staff have not been satisfactorily addressed.

“No teacher should go to work expecting to be verbally or physically abused and we will continue to take action to protect the rights of our members to a safe working environment where the learning and progress of pupils can be prioritised.”

'Requires improvement'

Haven High was told it required improvement following its last inspection by the education watchdog in November 2022.

Ofsted inspectors raised concerns about pupil absences and identified some issues with behaviour.

Their report said: "Many pupils enjoy learning. They are keen to get involved during lessons, and take pride in their work.

"However, the curriculum is not taught consistently well in all subjects and year groups. Some lessons are disrupted by the poor conduct of a few pupils. These pupils get distracted when they struggle with the work and do not get the help they need."

Haven High Academy said it remains "open to discussing any issues" with staff and the union.

It added that it wrote to families to give them early notice of the strike action, but the union had declined further talks to limit the disruption.

A school spokesperson said: "Although we have made clear to NASUWT representatives that we remain open to discussing any issues, they have not raised specific concerns about staff feeling vulnerable.“We pride ourselves on being a very open and approachable organisation, and feedback from staff matters hugely to us. We’ve already taken a number of steps to address issues that have been raised with us – including a review of the whole behaviour policy which colleagues and union representatives contributed to.

“Our doors are open for further discussions and we would encourage NASUWT to raise issues directly with us so that we can explore them and find a way forward."

The school said more CCTV cameras would be installed in areas not already covered by the existing system and there is now more of a presence from senior leadership on corridors and during detentions.

The school remained open for year 11 students on Wednesday, with all other year groups moving to a virtual timetable.

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