Carmarthenshire schools: Pupils' vaping and social media sparks fears

A group of secondary school head teachers have written to parents urging them to talk to their children about their "detrimental behaviour".

Schools in Carmarthenshire noted an increase in abuse towards staff, deliberate vandalism and vaping.

The letter, signed by the heads of 11 schools, said the challenges reflected the "national picture".

The Welsh government said it had doubled mental health support for schools since the pandemic began.

Friday's letter, which was also posted to Facebook, said it understood the education system since March 2020 had created a "significant burden" for everyone.

September 2021 to April 2022 has been the longest period schools have remained open for face-to-face teaching after Covid considerably disrupted that for the majority of the pandemic.

But head teachers said the challenges faced by pupils were "becoming more and more apparent".

These included an increase in inappropriate use of social media, more pupils using e-cigarettes - or vapes - during the school day, and more graffiti and abusive language directed towards peers and staff.

"All the points noted above not only impact young people's health and well-being and education, but they could potentially lead to criminal investigations and prosecution," the letter said.

The secondary schools in the county warned parents of increasing deliberate damage to school property, including pupils cutting computer cables, kicking and punching holes in walls, smashing ceiling tiles and flooding toilets with paper towels.

Such vandalism, they said, is a crime and pupils could be prosecuted and fined.

Head teachers also said schools are having to invest a significant amount of staff time to prevent pupils from vaping, saying it was "time which would be far better spent mentoring and supporting pupils' well-being".

The letter noted research which suggests vaping can be addictive, can slow brain development in teenagers and lead to smoking cigarettes.

It said despite abusive language directed towards teachers being "wrong", sanctions do not seem to change habits.

This abusive has also filtered into group chats, teachers said, with pupils increasingly using their phones in school and until the early hours of the morning.

Despite the concerns, the letter emphasised the majority of pupils were well-behaved and making a "positive contribution to schools".

"We acknowledge that the points noted do not refer to all pupils," it said.

"We are highlighting these issues, however, so that we can tackle them together."

The letter ended with head teachers encouraging parents to discuss the concerns with their children, while teachers do in schools.

Rebecca Williams, policy officer at teaching union UCAC, said "quite entrenched" problems have "reached a bit of a head now".

"We've had six months of school without disruption but it hasn't been normal due to the sheer level of absences," she said.

"We may be coming out of the tunnel in terms of dealing with Covid as an illness, but we're only just beginning the journey to discover what the broader side effects of it all are.

"That's something that will take a long time."

Ms Williams said pupils are now "far more ready" to challenge staff, who have also been through "challenging times" professionally and personally.

"Problems like this facing them definitely increases the stress and strain - it's not helpful."

Having extra staff members to focus on individual pupils' mental health and to talk to them about their experiences in lockdown would help "work out why pupils are behaving the way they are", she added.

The Welsh government said: "We've more than doubled mental health support for schools, to over £12 million, since the start of the pandemic as part of our 'whole school' approach to mental health and well-being.

"Counselling services currently see around 11,500 learners each year and support for staff will be trebled this year."

Carmarthenshire council said the schools were dealing with this matter.