Addressing School Behaviour Challenges
Tom Bennett, Northern Ireland's newly appointed school behaviour tsar, has highlighted the growing concern of poor behaviour in schools. He emphasized the need for effective measures to tackle this issue, noting that children can lose up to one hour per day due to low-level disruptions. Bennett described behaviour management as teaching children "really robust habits of doing things even when they're hard."
Speaking to NI, he remarked that his role involves "as much evolution as revolution."
Who is Tom Bennett?
Bennett is a former teacher and behaviour expert who was initially appointed by the Conservative government in 2015 to review how schools in England managed pupil behaviour. This appointment led some critics to label him "Tory Tom," suggesting his approach was too strict.
"On one level I couldn't give a hoot because that's not true," Bennett said regarding the nickname. "I've been appointed by Labour ministers, I've been appointed by Tory ministers. My job itself is non-political I hope."
In 2025, he was appointed as an attendance and behaviour ambassador by the Department for Education under Labour minister Bridget Phillipson.
His Approach to Behaviour Management
Bennett's 2017 review of behaviour in English schools advocated for a well-established culture of good behaviour, incorporating clear rules, consequences, sanctions, and rewards. When asked if many schools lacked strictness, he noted that "strict" is a loaded term but stressed the importance of schools following through on their policies.
"That meant 'clear boundaries' and 'predictable consequences'. The core of behaviour management is teaching people how to do the right thing," he said. "But you do need to have boundaries and you do need to have penalties and children need that more than most people."
He supported the use of sanctions such as removing students from class, detentions, and expulsions, emphasizing the need for a consistent and predictable system rather than arbitrary decisions.
"There needs to be a system of that, but it needs to be a predictable system, it can't just be 'I feel like it,' or 'I'm cross.' The schools need to be as rigorous as possible. There needs to be a wee bit of wriggle room round the edges for children who need additional support. But I always use the comparison of the roads - everybody should drive on the correct side of the road and keep to the speed limit, but there are exceptions and exemptions like emergency services vehicles."
Clarifying the Zero-Tolerance Misconception
Bennett clarified that his approach is not zero-tolerance, which he described as a "PR scam by some schools."
"There's no such thing as a zero-tolerance approach. Every school I've worked with that say they're zero-tolerance always have exceptions, and permit accommodations for children who need it."
He emphasized the importance of addressing minor behavioural issues such as lateness or low-level disruptions, which can significantly impact lessons.
"People sometimes categorise low-level disruption versus high-level disruption which might be a fight or something like that. Fights are dramatic but they're less common but low-level disruption like lack of attention or coming in late or throwing a pen at somebody, this is kryptonite to a lesson."
Is Behaviour in Schools Worsening?
Bennett acknowledged the perception that school behaviour is deteriorating, a trend not unique to Northern Ireland.
"Some people would attribute it to things like social media, Covid, increasing complexities of needs, greater prevalence of special educational needs," he said. "What we're hearing a lot from people in schools - leaders, teachers, principals, people who are child-facing - is that there is an increasing issue. And that's not something that can be ignored, that's something that needs to be addressed because behaviour is fundamental to a child's success at school."
According to the Department for Education (DE), 4,756 pupils were suspended from schools in Northern Ireland during the 2025/26 academic year, a decrease from the previous year. Persistent infringements of school rules were the most common reason for suspension, followed by physical attacks on pupils and verbal abuse of staff. Additionally, 35 pupils were expelled in 2025/26, all from post-primary schools.
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