Wales commits to addressing poor pupil behaviour

The Welsh Government has committed to addressing the issue of poor pupil behaviour at a behaviour summit, attended by the unions, local authorities and Headteachers.

Speaking as she closed the summit, the Education Secretary Lynne Neagle, outlined her commitment to a sustained focus on behaviour and a continued dialogue with teachers, parents and young people.  

Ms Neagle said: "I have been delighted to host today’s summit and to see such positive engagement from across the sector on these challenging issues. We will give today’s ideas and feedback full consideration but it is clear to me that there are some things we can do quickly to start to make a difference.

"I am committing today to create the structures needed to support multi-agency working to help organisations to come together to tackle the societal issues that contribute to challenging behaviour.

"It is clear there is an appetite for guidance for schools to be updated to ensure there is more clarity and consistency across Wales."

We will establish a system for sharing best practice between schools locally and nationally taking lessons from approaches to preventing violence which are currently being tested in schools."

A key theme emerging from the summit was the need to develop professional learning opportunities focused on behaviour management techniques, de-escalation and intervention. She committed to take this away and ensure that this work was addressed by the newly established professional learning and leadership body.

The Cabinet Secretary said she recognised the need to ensure there were consistent definitions and reporting of incidents and that a clear data set at local authority and national level was essential.

Councillor Lis Burnett, WLGA spokesperson for education said: "We’re pleased to see Welsh Government giving this important issue the attention it deserves, and supporting a joined-up, all-Wales approach. It’s vital that we have open, national conversations with everyone involved to find positive, practical solutions.

"We need to keep children at the heart of this work — focusing on what’s behind their behaviour, not just the behaviour itself, and making sure we’re promoting positive actions and language."