Rise In Teachers Abused Online By Parents

The number of teachers being abused online by parents and children has risen sharply.

Some 40% of teachers say they have been attacked by parents on social media in the past year - up from 27% from the 2014 figures.

School staff are facing sexist, racist and homophobic comments, as well as offensive remarks about their appearance and competence, according to the NASUWT union.

The number of teachers who have suffered abuse from either pupils or teachers in the past 12 months is 60% - a huge rise from 21% last year.

One post about a teacher read: "I hope she gets cancer."

A heavily pregnant teacher was called an "ugly f*****g b***h", while others have had photos posted alongside words such as "b***h" and "t**t".

One teacher said they were harassed for nine months by children who sent sexually explicit messages and set up a fake social media account in their name.

In another example, a teacher was described as a "b***h" for making her child do PE without her inhaler.

The most common age of pupils dishing out abuse was 14-16 (57%). Five percent were aged 7-11.

NASUWT general secretary Chris Keates said: "It is deeply worrying to see that the abuse of teachers has risen by such a huge margin this year.

"Equally concerning is that it appears that more parents are the perpetrators of the abuse.

"The vile, insulting and personal comments are taking their toll on teachers' health and wellbeing and undermining their confidence to do their job.

"Many teachers tell us that they suspect they are being abused online but dare not look, for fear they could never walk into their school again to have to face their abusers.

"While there has been some improvement in action taken on reported abuse, there are still too many cases where no appropriate action is taken and teachers are being left devastated, humiliated and traumatised."