A school paid for a petting zoo, bouncy castles and sports sessions to keep pupils busy while teachers walked out in succession over 'despicable' behaviour. Teachers at Ysgol Nantgwyn in Tonypandy accused the principal and management of "rewarding bad behaviour".
Teachers describe the school as a 'hostile' environment where they are regularly called the c-word, sworn at and threatened. Large teenage boys have been 'circling' female staff in the corridors and in one case a boy dropped his trousers in front of a staff member, they said.
As members of the Nasuwt education union prepare to strike again, they accused the school of failing to take action against behavior including violence, sexualized insults, threats and "multiple thefts from bags" by students. The union said the school should have closed if cover staff could not be secured during the strike, instead paying for fun activities instead of lessons.
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De Nasuwt said the school had hired A&S Animal Encouters from Merthyr to entertain pupils who brought animals, including armadillos, snakes, meerkats and Tonyrefail-based Sporting Marvels, when 35 teachers went on strike on October 9 and 10.
"The school has a bouncy castle and an obstacle course and has used a private company to organize activities. The message to the children is that if you misbehave you will be rewarded with bouncy castles and an afternoon off the timetable," said Sharron Daly, Nasuwt National Executive for the Ysgol Nantgwyn area.
Teachers, who did not want to be named for fear of reprisals, described coming to work as "humiliating and demoralizing". They said they walked out after months of talks failed to introduce an effective behavior policy through the school.
One said: "Swearing has become a common occurrence, there have been thefts from staff bags by students, female staff have had to deal with sexualised language from male students, and many staff and students have felt threatened and intimidated by other students. nothing to fix this, only Nasuwt action and a collective refusal to teach aggressive students have had any impact.
"Homophobic comments were made to staff, which again went unheeded. We have also experienced physical violence, with students throwing chairs at staff and overturning tables.
"Students get away with anything, there are no consequences. We all know that children will push boundaries, but it sets them up for failure later in life if we don't correct these behaviors and make our students accountable for their actions.
Teachers said incidents they experience at Ysgol Nantgwn include:"Management does not understand this. They tailor teachers' reports of aggressive behavior and intimidate even younger staff to downplay the seriousness of incidents."
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Chairs and other objects are thrown at them
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Being pushed and 'circled' by older teenage boys.
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Regularly sworn in
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Homophobic abuse
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Skipping school causes disruption
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In one case, a male teenager dropped his pants in front of a female teacher, while another repeatedly called a teacher a "fat old bastard."
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A teacher receives an offensive, sexualized email from a male student
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Skipping school
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Fights between students
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Unchallenged vaping on the site by students
Ms Daly said the school was only able to run some GCSE lessons on the strike days of October 9 and 10, with most pupils being sent to the off-schedule sessions in the sports hall during the run-out. She said Sporting Marvels, which describes itself on its website as a Christian charity based in the Rhondda, and Mini Mayhem Soft, a bouncy castle hire company based in Tonyrefail, were called in on the first day of strike and a petting zoo company and Mini Mayhem on the second day .
Teachers said the situation at the all-ages school of more than 1,000 students is so bad that it is affecting their family lives and causing some to look for work elsewhere. The union said the behavior had become so bad that it was not safe for staff and students, many of whom want to learn and see their education disrupted.
One teacher accused the school and local education authority of failing to take action for fear of the negative impact on exclusion and attendance data.
"The current situation at the school is quite hostile. Students have thrown chairs at staff and attacked each other, which the senior leadership team is not dealing with," the teacher said.
"Senior staff have instilled a culture of blame in teachers where we are intimidated into downplaying serious behavioral problems to make behavior figures appear better than they should be.
"Staff find the school a very upsetting place, with many staff feeling unhappy and ill at the thought of what they are being blamed for or being intimidated into changing the details for the day."
Describing a recent day at the school, the union said one of its members had experienced the worst case of verbal abuse in her 30 years of teaching: "Two students skipped a lesson. When our member was brought to class 10 minutes late by a senior teacher, our member told the students that they would lose 10 minutes of their lunch to make up the time.
"One of the students flew into a rage, swore repeatedly and called our member a 'fat old bastard' over and over again in front of the entire class. He then punched the door as he continued to curse.
"The senior member of staff managed to get the student out through the door, but all the while continued to swear and shout the same vile words. A short time later the student returned to the classroom and did the same, swearing again and banging on the door."
De Nasuwt said that further strike days have been set for November 6, 13, 27 and 28 and that the situation at the school has been resolved on nine dates in December, January and February.
Ysgol Nantgwyn School responds:
When asked about the behavior at the school and the cost of activities for pupils on the strike days, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council said on behalf of the school: "School leaders and senior council officers have worked positively and productively with Nasuwt and its members. It is disappointing that the dispute continues despite everyone's efforts to resolve it.
"The school has an existing behavior policy, which has been discussed. Following feedback from Nasuwt on behalf of its members, proposed changes to this policy have been implemented to address issues of concern. We hope that after further consultation the remaining issues will be resolved."
The council said the school had a positive inspection in April 2023, with no major concerns about pupils' behavior identified. Estyn noted that, as a result of a new behavior system, the behavior of almost all primary school-age students is consistently good and many middle-age students are well behaved.
The statement continued: "Additional concerns were formally raised by NASUWT to the school in December 2023, and to the council in February 2024. Many improvements have been made since then, leading to better student behavior and engagement, which Nasuwt members have recognized. The school wants to continue these improvements.
"Recent staff training on improving student behavior received positive feedback. We hope that further review of the behavior policy will ensure consistency in dealing with challenging behavior from a minority of students.
"It is important to recognize the positive behavior and dedication of most students and the school's commitment to inclusive education. We will continue to work with Nasuwt and its members to resolve any outstanding issues.
"The well-being of our students and workforce is of paramount importance and the claim that Nasuwt members are being targeted is refuted in the strongest possible terms."
"With regard to Sporting Marvels, there is an ongoing agreement between the school and Sporting Marvels throughout the year."
What happens where you live? Find out by adding your zip code or visit InYourAreaDe Nasuwt said further strike days have been set for November 6, 13, 27 and 28 and nine dates in December, January and February unless the situation is resolved.
