THE number of school pupils suspended each week in Worcestershire for physical assaults in schools has been revealed.

A total of 23 pupils in the county are suspended for physical assaults on adults and other pupils each week, according to latest Department for Children, Schools and Families figures.

These figures, which relate to maintained primary, secondary, special schools, CTCs, academies and non-maintained special schools for 2007/08, also show that 3,010 pupils a year in Worcestershire are given fixed period exclusions.

In a speech to the Centre for Policy Studies in London yesterday evening, Shadow Children’s Secretary Michael Gove, who highlighted the national figures, outlined his plan for change in England’s schools, which included ideas to move to a high quality system of teacher recruitment and training and also give teachers powers to keep order in the classroom.

“It is simply not acceptable that teachers have to put up with bad behaviour when they’re trying to teach. That’s why we want to give them more powers to keep order in the classroom,” he added. Worcester MP Mike Foster said while he was shocked with the county figures and there was no excuse for physical assaults in schools, he was unsure of Mr Gove’s argument.

“He is suggesting that heads do not have the power to deal with disruptive pupils, when he is releasing figures that show there is a number of pupils being disciplined by schools,” he said.

Headteacher Neil Morris of Christopher Whitehead Language College, Worcester, said it was “very rare” for physical assaults to happen in his school.

“In the 11 weeks since we started back in September we have issued 11 fixed period exclusions but no permanent exclusions. We have a very simple mantra that we follow, which is if a pupil raises a fist then they go home,” he said.

Mr Morris said while he would not criticise other heads for permanently excluding a pupil, an exclusion should be a last resort.