More than a third of teachers know schoolchildren who have been sexually harassed by other pupils, a survey has revealed.

The poll of more than 1,300 teachers found 39% were aware of children who had been victims, while 86% said they had dealt with pupils sharing sexual messages or images with each other.

Cases included boys forcing girls to share inappropriate photographs of themselves and students having their faces photo-shopped on to pornographic images, the NASUWT teachers' union warned.

The findings come after figures revealed earlier this year that children as young as 10 have fallen victim to "upskirting" - the act of taking photographs under dresses without consent.

Liberal Democrat MP Wera Hobhouse has tabled a parliamentary bill that would make it a criminal offence to take a photo up a person's skirt without their permission.


Chris Keates, NASUWT general secretary, said teachers had never before had to deal with "such a complex range of pupil welfare issues as they do today".

"The pressure on teachers and headteachers is enormous and is putting at risk their own mental and physical health and wellbeing," he said.

Image: Wera Hobhouse has tabled a parliamentary bill to outlaw 'upskirting'

"These challenges are compounded by cuts to school staffing and to external specialist support.

"The Government must bear responsibility for the position in which schools find themselves. It is a betrayal of staff and pupils to continue to expect schools alone to deal with all of these issues."

The NASUWT poll also found infant schoolchildren were showing signs of mental health issues such as anxiety, panic attacks and depression.

Around one in seven teachers (14%) who knew students facing suspected mental health issues said the pupils were aged between four and seven. More than a quarter (27%) said they were aged seven to 11.

In one case, a teacher described an eight-year-old pupil who climbed on the roof and said they wanted to kill themselves

A Department for Education spokesman said: "Harassment or bullying of any kind is completely unacceptable and abhorrent in any setting, especially schools.

"All schools should be safe places for pupils to learn and teachers to teach.

"To support schools, we have recently published new advice, specifically on child on child sexual violence and sexual harassment, and are making Relationships Education compulsory in all primary schools and Relationships and Sex education compulsory in all secondary schools."