Threat to teachers illustrated by spate of violent assaults

The threat posed by parents and relatives in schools has been illustrated with a spate of high-profile cases.

Earlier this year six children were excluded from Southfields Primary School, west London, after their relatives were accused of attacking a Somali mother in the infants' playground. The attackers allegedly shouted racist abuse at the woman before kicking her to the ground and breaking her finger.

A school governor at the gates with her six-month-old baby was also allegedly assaulted. The headteacher, Colin Lowther, 48, clashed with the local education authority, Ealing Council, over his decision to exclude the pupils.

Shawn Gladding, 36, was sentenced last year to an evening curfew for four months and given 180 hours community service after being found guilty of attacking the headteacher, Leonard Holman, in front of terrified children at Angel Road Middle School in Norwich. He said he lost his temper because the school had not done enough to stop his son of nine being bullied. Frazer Morrison, the stipendiary magistrate, told the father: "If you had struck him, you'd be going to jail now."

Teachers' leaders criticised the decision not to jail the man. Doug McAvoy, the general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, said: "assaults are not acceptable in any way. Teachers have to be able to go about their work without living in fear of attacks by parents."

Stephen Magee, 49, was jailed for nine months last year for attacking a headteacher, Eamonn Cahill, after a meeting over his son's suspension from Southlands Comprehensive in New Romney, Kent. Mr Cahill said Magee was "very aggressive, very rude and very agitated".

Judge Andrew Patience told Magee: "Years ago, parents and teachers acted together in the interests of the people who matter, namely their children. These days, violence is done by people such as you, who have no excuse for doing it."