Education Minister calls roundtable to protect teachers from violent primary school students
An expert roundtable has been announced to tackle growing reports of physical violence towards teaching staff – as data shows a worrying trend amongst SA children.
The state government has announced it would host its second education roundtable after latest data showed a drastic increase in physical violent towards teachers – with the vast majority of cases by primary school students.
Incidents of physical violence towards teachers have risen drastically year on year with 2024 data revealing there was 662 reported incidents, an increase of almost 400 incidents since 2021, when there were 273 incidents of violence towards teachers reported. In 2022 there were 359 incidents and in 2023, 513 incidents.
The announcement comes after latest annual data recently released to InDaily showed there were 780 compensation claims totalling $26.45 million made against the state’s Education Department in the past year – including from 194 teachers who claimed they were hit by moving objects.
Next February’s roundtable would draw together students, education experts, unions, police and external service providers to discuss future challenges and how to move to the next stage in working to reduce violence and bullying.
Education Minister Blair Boyer said it would build on work already undertaken to tackle school violence, saying despite schools seeing “really important progress” in reducing violence in high schools, there was still “more to do”.
“Violence and bullying are complex community issues, requiring a whole of society approach,” he said.
“We are taking action to support schools to prevent and respond to violence and avoid what can be the long-term impacts of this behaviour for staff and students.”
Following the 2022 roundtable which aimed to target bullying and violence prevention, the state government developed the $6 million Safe and Supportive Learning Environments Plan of Action 2024-2026.
The Plan of Action included implementing a revised suspension and exclusion procedure to promote restorative approaches to prevent repeated violent behaviour.
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In 2024, secondary school incidents declined by 4.5 per cent with suspensions also down 7.3 per cent and exclusions down 20.8 per cent.
Issues related to social media also decreased by 80.5 per cent from 2023 to 2025 following the ban of mobile phones in high school.
The development of a new Work Health and Safety Strategy is also underway to address violence against staff and is expected to be released early 2026.
“We must continue to work on this issue, with the safety and wellbeing of staff and young people at the forefront of this work, both nationally and within our state across all sectors,” Boyer said.
More than $2 million in taxpayers’ dollars has been used in a “grassroots program” with the latest funding directed to 38 schools for projects including transforming Mount Compass Area School’s concrete courtyard into a colourful play space, Reynella East College creating courtyards where students can play table tennis and games, and a native bush tucker garden sanctuary providing a “safe, calming space” at East Adelaide School.
