Five essential points

Relationships are a clear strength across most schools. In most schools, children and young people experience positive relationships with staff and peers, which support wellbeing, inclusion and engagement in learning.

Low-level disruption is widespread and is impacting learning. In over half of schools, low-level disruptive behaviour is evident and adversely affects the quality of learning.

Serious disruptive/violent behaviour is less common but has a disproportionate impact. In a minority of establishments, a small number of children and young people present with seriously disruptive or violent behaviour, significantly affecting staff safety, wellbeing, and the wider learning climate.

Incident recording, especially for serious and discriminatory behaviour, is inconsistent. The report highlights major concerns about inconsistent and incomplete recording of serious incidents (including racism and other discriminatory behaviours), limiting schools’ ability to spot trends and take preventative action.

Better outcomes are linked to consistent whole-school practice and multi-agency support. Stronger practice is associated with clear, consistently applied behaviour policies; inclusive/rights-based approaches; professional learning for all staff, and effective partnership-working for children and young people with additional support needs.