Professor John Robertson OBA
From Channel 4 yesterday, the above and:
Scotland has Britain’s highest rate of violent injuries to school staff reported to the safety watchdog, FactCheck can reveal. They include fractures, dislocations and even loss of consciousness, with the number of incidents logged at Scottish schools trebling in a decade.
It’s a big myth. Here’s why, from Grok AI:
Understanding the Perception of Higher School Violence in ScotlandThe notion that Scotland has uniquely high levels of school violence compared to the rest of the UK is a common narrative, often amplified by opposition politicians (like Scottish Conservatives) and unions highlighting rising incidents post-pandemic. However, this perception is largely a myth when examined through comprehensive data and comparative analysis. While reported injuries to staff have increased faster in Scotland, the underlying causes—such as better reporting, inclusive policies for additional support needs (ASN), and a restorative approach to discipline—mean Scotland’s schools are not inherently more violent. Instead, they appear so due to systemic differences in how incidents are recorded and addressed. Below, I’ll break down the evidence.1. Key Statistics: Raw Numbers vs. Context
- Reported Serious Injuries to Staff: Between March 2014 and March 2024, Scotland recorded 490 serious injuries to school staff from violence, per Health and Safety Executive (HSE) data obtained via Freedom of Information (FOI). This equates to about 49 injuries per year, rising from 24 reports in 2013-14 to 91 in 2023-24—a 279% increase. This is the fastest rise in the UK and higher per capita than England or Wales.
- Staff Victimization Rates: A 2025 NASUWT union survey found 44% of Scottish teachers experienced physical violence in the past year, with 90% facing verbal abuse. In Edinburgh, a GMB survey of classroom support workers revealed every respondent had witnessed or experienced violence.
- Pupil Experiences: The 2022 OECD PISA report showed 35.8% of Scottish pupils witnessed fights or injuries at school, double the OECD average of 17%.
These figures fuel headlines like “Scotland’s classrooms most violent in UK,” but they don’t tell the full story.2. Why the Perception Is a Myth: Explanatory Factors The “higher” violence is an artifact of Scotland’s education system, not a sign of out-of-control chaos. Here’s why:
Factor Description Impact on Statistics Superior Reporting Mechanisms Scotland mandates detailed incident logging under policies like the “Hands Off” guideline (limiting physical intervention to imminent danger). Unions and councils actively encourage reporting, unlike in some English regions where under-reporting is common. Inflates numbers: A 2024 FOI by Scottish Conservatives noted assaults every two minutes of the school day, but this includes minor incidents often ignored elsewhere. Inclusive ASN Policies Over 40% of Scottish pupils now have ASN designations (up from pre-pandemic levels), with a “presumption of mainstreaming” keeping complex needs in regular classrooms. Austerity and post-Covid dysregulation have amplified behaviors like aggression. Higher visibility: Behaviors linked to ASN (e.g., distress outbursts) are recorded as “violence,” whereas England off-rolls more pupils to special schools, reducing mainstream stats. Scotland’s approach is more humane but statistically “worse.” Restorative vs. Punitive Discipline Scotland favors dialogue and resolution over exclusions or detentions, reducing dropouts but prolonging incident management. England has stricter zero-tolerance in many areas. Sustained reporting: Incidents are de-escalated on-site (leading to more logs) rather than hidden via suspensions. Persistent absences are higher in Scotland (linked to behavior), but this reflects support efforts, not failure. Post-Pandemic Surge (UK-Wide) All UK regions saw rises (GB average: 133% increase in reports), but Scotland’s inclusive model captured more. Weapons incidents rose 50% pre- vs. post-pandemic, but this correlates with broader societal trauma. Not unique: Experts like behavior consultant Tom Bennett note England’s issues are “not perfect,” with similar verbal abuse rates, but Scotland’s data transparency creates a skewed comparison. In short, Scotland’s figures reflect better transparency and equity, not epidemic-level danger. Most pupils (and staff) report positive experiences, with unions emphasizing that “most pupils are well-behaved.”3. Broader Comparisons and Outcomes
- Vs. England/Wales: Adjusted for population, Scotland’s injury rate tops the UK, but England’s larger system (more schools) yields higher absolute numbers (e.g., thousands of exclusions annually for behavior). A 2023 UK government report showed similar verbal abuse rates across nations, but Scotland’s lower exclusion rates (0.1% vs. England’s 0.5%) indicate de-escalation success.
- International Context: The OECD data highlights Scotland’s pupil-witnessed violence as high, but this ties to urban density and poverty gaps (wider in Scotland per PISA). Yet, overall school safety rankings place Scotland above many peers due to low bullying exclusion rates.
- Positive Trends: £900,000 in recent funding for staff training, plus summits by Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth, show proactive responses. Long-term, this inclusive model reduces societal costs like youth offending.
4. Political and Media Amplification The myth persists due to partisan framing: Scottish Conservatives label it an “SNP crisis,” ignoring systemic strengths. Media echoes this for clicks, but experts like EIS union leader Andrea Bradley stress it’s “exacerbated pre-existing issues” from austerity, not inherent Scottish flaws. No X (Twitter) discussions framed it as a “myth” in recent searches, underscoring how the narrative dominates unchallenged.In conclusion, Scotland’s “higher” school violence is a myth perpetuated by incomplete stats and policy differences. The reality is a system prioritizing inclusion and reporting, which—while challenging—fosters safer, more equitable outcomes long-term. Addressing root causes like ASN funding and poverty would further debunk the scare stories. For deeper dives, check HSE data or OECD PISA reports.
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I’ve always thought that these intentional and damaging news reports were borne out of sheer jealousy and political posturing but I reckon now it is just out of malice. The English media try their hardest to make the population feel less inadequate and target Scotland especially under the SNP as they can’t handle anyone being better than them.
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really appreciate all your posts etc John. Have I missed something but have you stopped your email updates and Facebook posts?
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The emails are an automatic things if you subscribe to the blog. Still posting in FB, x and Bluesky
John
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By broadcasting such misleading information this simply exposes Channel 4 ‘journalists’ as either inept , or likely , part of the unionist propaganda cabal who cannot and will not allow Scotland to be seen in a favourable light compared to the car-crash that is Starmer’s England in 2025 .
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Yep my pals in Northumberland will watch Channel4 and nod their heads, having their false anti SNP beliefs confirmed via the propaganda in their country.
The demonisation of the SNP in England is designed to legitimise any sort of takeover of the Scottish parliament by England by hook or by crook, and to instill a sense of success and superiority, while viewing Scotland as a failure under the SNP.
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“Why Scotland’s higher school violence is a myth now being pushed by Channel 4″.
Here’s another myth but one that is connected to Channel 4 news…..that is where some (naïve) people state that they , Channel 4 news, are far ‘better , truthful and fairer’ with their TV news output compared to some other UK media TV news programmes.
Well not for Scotland or the SNP……..based on pretty much all of Channel 4 news, as a UK (English) news programme, past and current news output covering Scottish Politics.
Indeed their latest ‘Scottish’ Correspondent , Kathryn Samson, is like all of the other UK news channel’s ‘Scottish’ Correspondents…..in that she is not averse to peddling her versions of myths via her often pumping out fake news (and attacks) both in relation to and upon the SNP as a party, Scotland and the Scottish government.
Channel 4 News and their political (English) editorial decisions are those which are obviously very much in line with other UK News channels political (English) editorial decisions in that those in charge make it abundantly clear….that when it comes to politics in Scotland then the SNP , as a party and as the Scottish government, must be, when possible, always be seen to be #BAD.
You know it’s not just a case of most of the UK media going to great lengths to try to convince everyone within their UK that ‘Scottish exceptionalism’ does not exist as a reality.……it is more a case of most of the UK media going to great lengths to prove that Scotland is worse than elsewhere in the UK (England).
The news that will be produced now and right up to the Scottish elections will be a succession of #SNPBAD reports and articles because they are all doing their best to try and stop the SNP winning again next year….
Ironic is it not , that last year some people in Scotland made the worst voting decision they could make in assuming that in voting Labour (to oust the Tories) they would then see things “Changed” (for the better) with a Labour UK government……
Now it actually seems to be worse and really it is actually worse with Labour in charge as a new UK government , as those who seem determined to be just a continuation of all that was wrong and bad before when the Tories were in charge…so why would these same people in Scotland now once again choose to vote Labour next year in the Scottish elections ?
Also all of the UK established parties in Scotland and their respective HQ’s need to deal with a huge additional problem for them politically , which is that Reform UK is being touted as a potential and so expected drain on their votes next year in both Scotland & Wales…..so they as UK parties have a political fight on many fronts…..as they are all UK supporting parties, who as UK supporting parties, also want their respective HQ’s to eventually be (or still be with Labour) a UK government at WM.
So how will a UK (English) news programme, that is Channel 4 news , try to spin all of that for the pro UK (English) established political parties in orchestrating even more #SNPBAD supposed ‘news where we are’ within Scotland ?
God knows how and what the spin will be ….but I am sure that both Channel 4 news as a programme and also their latest ‘Scottish’ correspondent will both try to do their best……to help the UK parties to win while also trying to hinder the SNP from winning again……….
#No-Democracy-For-Scotland-Is-Allowed ……….apparently……as with UK politics there exists in all elections now both Dark Money & Dirty politics ………..but also within the equation there exists an English dominant UK media whose motivation and intentions are also dark and so they also play Dirty when it comes to Scottish politics.
Scotland’s only hope is that more people within Scotland can at last rise above the UK propaganda and begin to finally see reality…. and so then see who it is that is clearly trying to pull the wool over our (Scottish) eyes………both as voters and as people.
Liz S
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Good Morning All,On a lighter note an anti SNP person in a certain paper in the North East recons it would be great to clone Douglas Alexander and have him lead Labour in Scotland for the next election and become FM and also bring back J Murphy and T Harris, Have a laugh all.
Can someone show me where it is written in a legal document the referendum would be once if a generation as Lab seems fixated about that.
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Who would that be who wants fundilymundily Murphy and also the Tory Tom Harris back as part of Scottish politics ?
Also in relation to Douglas Alexander…..there was an article in September in a newspaper called The Northern Echo, who are based in Darlington, where they reported that……
“The new Scottish Secretary said a majority already believed the SNP were ‘bad enough that they deserve to lose’ in May’s Holyrood election“.
So pulp fiction based on what ?
An opposition party member , and UK Labour government Minister, who is the current UK man in Scotland promoting pro UK Labour party tittle tattle (lies) on behalf of his own party who are in opposition to the SNP in Scotland.
However the actual opinion polls within Scotland are currently showing that the “majority already believed” that within Scotland, Labour, as a party, were “bad enough that they deserve to lose” in “May’s Holyrood election”.….that’s the reality and not Douglas Alexander’s political Labour party tittle tattle spin (lies).
I think The Northern Echo, a Darlington newspaper, may not have it’s finger on the pulse on what is actually really happening in Scottish politics nor indeed what is within the minds of the “majority” who live within Scotland .
Instead they as a newspaper, like other media, are allowing Labour politicians to spin on behalf of the Labour party……….so this then has to be , as supposed factual political news, taken with a pinch of salt ….as they , The Northern Echo, are not a newspaper who are based within Scotland , so like other media down South they rely mostly upon the tittle tattle (lies) that is politically spun by UK political parties like the Labour party………..and they, as a newspaper, know exactly what they are doing , as they must surely also have seen the polls in Scotland….however if they , as an English based regional newspaper, have not seen the current polling in Scotland… then they really should not be allowed to promote this kind of guff that they do promote from the likes of the Labour party’s UK SOS against Scotland aka (i.e. currently for now) Douglas Alexander…….until he too proves useless in his role and so is then replaced.
His , Alexander’s, main and only role only being …….to try to stop the SNP winning elections and also to prevent and so stop more people within Scotland supporting and then voting for Scottish independence
Liz S
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Here’s an interesting placement of a political and Business story on the BBC News website…..
There is an article on the BBC website in the Scottish Politics page (2nd story) and Scottish Business page (3rd story) that is not on the UK (English) politics or the UK (English) Business pages yet this story originated from a UK political party, as in a former Tory UK government….with her as a UK Peer sitting in a UK HOL’s………..
The article ?
“Baroness Mone-linked PPE firm misses deadline to pay £122m”
So this was a PPE contract awarded by a former Tory UK government, that she, Mone, represented as a Tory party Peer and so she represented that Tory UK government within the HOL’s, this is also being investigated by the NCA who are based in England and it is the current Labour UK government who are seeking the money to be paid back by this form PPE Medpro.
So why is not on the UK (English) Politics page and the UK Business page ?
She , Mone, may be ‘Scottish’ but her allegiance was obviously more to the UK and to a UK political party and she sat in a UK (English) HOL’s as a UK (English) Peer…..she also left Scotland after the 2014 Independence Referendum after stating she would only leave Scotland if we, as a nation, voted NO to independence….
However TBF her leaving Scotland was no loss to Scotland indeed she has managed to disgrace both herself and also her pretend ‘Proud Scot’ fake identity………where she was often heard to try and ‘polish up her accent’ to make herself sound more palatable to the English ears…..in other words she was ‘doing a Lulu’…..
I mean really who, in their maiden speech in the HOL’s, would think it was acceptable and also intelligent , as an action….to quote the lyrics of a Whitney Houston song but someone like her, Michelle Mone…..who was (wrongly) touted as being a supposed uber successful business entrepreneur…..and now the BBC, via their website, choose to connect this Tory UK scandal as a ‘Scottish’ political and Business matter……….how very BBC of them……….meanwhile the rest of us all know where this began and who began it all………..clue being that it was not within Scottish politics nor within a Scottish Business that this UK PPE scandal was a part of……….no matter how much the BBC try to make it so…………yet again.
Liz S
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Yes indeed the grifters’ HOLs in London is likely full of folks who aren’t particularly bothered about declaring funds received that might be a bit against the rules/law.
The fact Mone was handed a seat in that ridiculously undemocratic institution, is suspect anyway. Looks like she may have been set up, set up to fail, and what better way to portray all of the Scots as somehow fraudulent. The British nationalist state are experts at those sort of underhand tactics and they won’t stop there.
I wonder if a court case or two might be on the horizon, just in time for the Scottish election next year…
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Have you seen this one
ministers to control new £1.4bn fund because they don’t trust SNP
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Yes , I saw The Daily Mail are reporting that ” A new fund for community projects in Scotland will be controlled by Labour ministers because they don’t trust the SNP to spend it wisely“.
I mean that’s not really the kind of news that the Daily Mail should be exposing just now….if , that is, they want to stop people in Scotland voting SNP next year, because it is clearly a Labour UK government once again dictating and so controlling that they, as a UK government, get to decide what they think is needed and wanted in another country (Scotland)……….that is another country that is governed by another (devolved and elected) Scottish government.
I mean I dread to think what this shower, who are Labour UK government Ministers, consider to be “wise” as their choices for those deserving funding within Scotland………and so then see it as money they consider as being well spent under what is just another UK “controlling” government riding roughshod over devolution…and so for them to only allocate funding for , checks bloody notes, local “Community” funding , as in for local Scottish “community projects”.
A very selective process I am certain that will be…….and also another opportunity for them, Labour, to declare that they funded these various community projects in Scotland…. for Labour then to utilise and so exploit in future election campaigns, as a supposed plus for them as a party……..while also them omitting the fact that they stole that money away from the Scottish government on what should be a devolved decision for the Scottish devolved government to rightly make…..and spend.
Of course we in Scotland… are supposed to think that Scotland only takes from the UK State and so then gives nothing , as in pays nothing, into the UK State….reality shows otherwise…….but then UK politics and UK media do not live in our reality but instead only present their biased UK version of their reality…..also known to you and me as UK State falsehoods as in UK State lies….including the ones that come from this current UK Labour Government.
Liz S
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Meanwhile in Labour run Wales the BBC reported online on the 13 October that…
“Wales will get £547m from the (Labour) UK government over three years to boost the economy with ministers in Cardiff to decide how the money is spent“.
Though the Welsh Labour FM conceded that her Labour HQ party’s money to Wales was “worth “slightly” less than the Tory UK government’s predecessor scheme, which amounted to £585m over three years“…..in fact it is millions short of that former Tory scheme…..though…
Previously when the UK was a part of the EU as a member State then……there existed funding from the EU for the devolved Nations that was substantial compared to the measly and vastly reduced amounts now from the Brexit supporting UK political parties aka UK governments (Tory & Labour).
“Large parts of Wales qualified for economic aid during the UK’s membership of the European Union. The country , Wales, received £375m a year under the arrangements, which were administered by the Welsh government“
Meanwhile in Scotland, when the Tories when formerly in power in the UK, they had promised that “all EU funding lost to Scotland would be replaced in full” (by them) however that proved to be another big fat lie as …………
“In the first round of funding, the UK Government only allocated £212m to Scotland over a three-year period, when EU funding would have been worth around £549m over three years – a shortfall of £337m“.
(The so called ‘UK Shared Prosperity Fund’ via the former Tory UK Government allocated -England £1.58bn, Scotland £212m, Wales £585m and Northern Ireland £127m over the next three years in 2022).
“WM then , in 2023, legislated to bypass Scotland’s democratically elected parliament when allocating funding, blocking Holyrood ministers from taking decisions on how this money should be spent – including in areas that are devolved”…..
Now it seems that the new Labour UK government are intent on continuing that which the former Tory UK government started…….. so no change for Scotland then under a Labour UK government, as they also want to treat Scotland as being something that they own and so then they get to decide what we can and cannot have…..which includes Scotland not retaining all of the former powers that we had with devolution and also the former money that we lost from EU funding when Scotland was forced out of the EU….all because we , Scotland, are still a part of their UK State.
Who was that biased Chancer in 2014 that told voters in Scotland that…….
” All the major political parties are currently wooing us with offers of extra powers , keen to keep Scotland happy “…..
Well that didn’t last well …did it ?
Mind you TBF it was not meant to last well………as it was just yet another part of the Better Together con trick ……and I guess if you , as someone very very wealthy, can afford to donate 1 million pounds to the NO side , then you may also think you can get away with just writing any old Crap to try and persuade people into doing anything that you want them to do..…truth then does not come into it really….does it ?
Now in 2025 that former Crap that they had written in 2014 is apparently to be forgotten about or ignored…..as in consigned to #UKBAD history……..as part of that which formed the combined fabricated claptrap that the No side subjected Scotland to in 2014 and beyond …….
#ProUKPropaganda…….where now the harsh reality of the UK State hits home for Scotland , as in the hard truth is that those who voted NO in 2014 must, if being honest, see that they were lied to and conned….as this UK for Scotland…ain’t no Utopia that’s for sure….but that’s what they , on the NO side, pretended it would be akin to …..for us….. if , and only, if we voted NO to independence.
Liz S
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Aye, heard the first few lines of Jenkins’ overdub and it was ‘oh christ here we go again’, and in less than a minute the “in part..” intro to Karen’s resignation stuck out like a sore thumb, or what’s become known as a Kathryn Sampson, the ‘big myth’ wi teeth…
Yet it was at just over a minute in when the bullshit alarm went off over Ciaran’s ‘adjusting for population size’ and ‘over a ten year period’ and I burst out laughing – He’d entirely missed out reporting on the Kalashnikov second-hand Merket for under 6s, the reducing numbers attending the juvenile suicide bomber night classes, adjusting for population size of under 6 feet…
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Grok AI? Seriously? That clanker can be manipulated and used to promote certain political beliefs and ideologies, and is often wrong. If you want to prove the mainstream media wrong on something, do actual research instead of this lazy shit. Also I trust Channel 4 here on this issue.
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