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Education and Inspections Bill

The hon. Lady, and the whole House, will know that the protection of the vulnerable is always my top priority. I would not want to disadvantage any group of people who find it difficult to understand what is required of them, but I am sure that any good school or reasonable governing body would put in place measures to allow those who are illiterate or unable to speak fluent English to participate in the school’s life. In that way, such people could understand and agree to their responsibilities in respect of pupils. The hon. Member for Brent, East (Sarah Teather) is right that we need to be sensitive about this matter and that it needs to be handed with appropriate care, but that is no reason to vote against the new clause. Given the spirit of consensus that has emerged in the course of consideration of the Bill, I hope that she will join us in fighting for good discipline in schools, and that she will support our teachers, and good teaching and learning. Good discipline is vital in school, but in a minority of schools and classrooms, discipline is in a state of crisis. Teachers and learners face real problems; it is estimated that 270 serious assaults are carried out on teachers every year. More than 60 children are suspended or expelled for violent behaviour every day in London schools, according to an investigation conducted in 2005 by the Evening Standard—[Interruption.] I am sorry that the hon. Member for Hove (Ms Barlow) seems to make light of a problem that has such an effect on the life of schools, the progress of other learners and the morale of teachers. It is the responsibility of all hon. Members to stand by those whose lives are being made a misery by the small minority of people who are determined to disrupt good practice in our schools. The Government have recognised that, in the White Paper and in the Bill, and have introduced measures to give additional protection to schools. The hon. Member for Brent, East has also tabled important amendments in this group that deal with confiscation. She recognises that teachers should be able to confiscate items such as mobile phones, which can cause immense difficulty. More seriously, they should be able to confiscate objects that are weapons or could be used as weapons. It is sad that violence is on the increase in a minority of schools and classrooms, but we must not deny that most schools in this country do a great job. We should celebrate the work of our teachers accordingly, but it would be irresponsible of us not to deal with the real problems of violence and indiscipline that permeate too many schools. It is therefore vital that we enforce home-school contracts and link them to discipline and pupils’ expectations. If pupils know what is expected of them and the conditions attached to their attendance as soon as they join a school community, there will be little doubt about their responsibilities should problems arise later on. Sir Alan Steer, the head teacher of Seven Kings high school in Ilford, was appointed by the Government to report on these matters. He said that schools should be ““comfortable, warm, sociable places””. To achieve that, we must get the right balance between discipline and security, so that students can enjoy the freedoms that they want, in the proper school atmosphere.