A London teacher has been awarded 850,000 after a student attack Teaching

A London teacher has been awarded 850,000 in compensation for punching and kicking a student in the face with a history of violence against other children and teachers during a science lesson.

The attack was so severe that it left her with severe mental trauma that resulted in her being sentenced twice under the Mental Health Act for her own safety, according to her trade union, NASUWT.

Since then he has not been able to return to the classroom and medical experts say he is less likely to work as a teacher again, hence the size of the settlement which is considered a record in such a case. The teacher has worked for an academy chain whose insurers will bear the bill.

The incident took place in January 2017 when the teacher was taking science classes at an anonymous academy in the capital. In an account of the attack published on the NASUWT website, the teacher said, “After the previous incident, the student was suspended for three days and I was assured that they would no longer attend my classes.”

However, when the student returned to school, he got up in class. “When I saw him at the beginning of the class, I told him he shouldn’t be there and tell him to leave, and he went out and locked the door,” said the teacher, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“I went back to the door and did not realize that he would return to the room. The rest is a bit vague as he attacks me again. The worst thing is that the school knew this student was in danger. This is not the first time he has been violent – he has been violent towards other children and teachers. “

The last attack of his career resulted in physical and mental trauma, including head injuries, tinnitus, hearing loss, trauma, back and ankle injuries, as well as PTSD and serious depressive disorder.

The £ 850,000 personal injury reward was part of a m 15m compensation that NASUWT secured for its members last year in a variety of areas, including unjust dismissals, discrimination, bullying, trade union-related damages and health and safety.

The case was detailed and disposed of on Thursday, ahead of the NASUWT National Conference in Birmingham over the Easter weekend.

In a separate case, a Welsh drama teacher was paid about £ 80,000 after being fired from his classroom in 2013 after developing life-threatening asthma. There were several problems after the renovation, including cracks in the classroom walls and cracks in the floor.

The teacher suffered from constant headaches, rhinitis, coughing and shortness of breath while teaching and eventually had an asthma attack at school and was taken by ambulance to the hospital where he was diagnosed with late-onset asthma, probably due to his working condition. . NASUWT has succeeded in bringing about demands for unjust dismissal and disability discrimination.

Dr. Patrick Roach, General Secretary of NASUWT, stated: “Although compensation is personal and in some cases, recognition of the financial loss suffered by members, it can never compensate for the effects of unfair treatment, discrimination and physical injury on individuals. .

“The money paid cannot compensate members for the emotional, physical and psychological pain they suffer, and the fact that, for some, their experience has left them unable to continue working in their education.”

He said these cases could be the tip of the iceberg. “There is no doubt that many other teachers will be fired without proper redress for poor, discriminatory or unjust treatment because they were too afraid to come forward or believed that nothing could be done.”