Details of teachers’ personal injury compensation claims revealed

Posted 06/04/2010

Schools and local councils have come under fire after the details of compensation claims submitted by teachers last year were released.

Trade union NASUWT said that a collective £20 million was paid out in damages to teachers across Britain in 2009 and insisted that they are not getting enough protection from accidents and injuries.

One of the cases saw a teacher awarded £173,595 after an incident in which she badly damaged her ankle in a playground, while another involved a woman hurting her arm as she attempted to stop two pupils from fighting.

Other examples involved slips, falls and trapping injuries sustained while on school grounds.

NASUWT general secretary Chris Keates commented that the compensation claims were largely for foreseeable accidents.

“It is of deep concern that many of the claims could have been avoided if employers at school and local authority level abided by their statutory duties and responsibilities,” he added.

This comes after it was recently reported that teaching assistant Julie Belcher had been awarded compensation after being hit by a falling wall frame during a PE lesson at Hartlebury Church of England Primary School.