Broad Left Conference Motions: Annual Conference 2026

Dear Members,

Please find attached motions for next year’s National NEU conference for your consideration of adoption and submitted to conference committee in accordance with union rul

Best wishes,

Robin Head (Broad Left chairperson)

Tackling the Behaviour Crisis in Schools

Conference notes:

• The escalating behaviour crisis in schools across England and Wales[1].
• The NASUWT’s 2025 report Behaviour in Schools: Key Messages[2] reveals 85% of teachers have experienced verbal abuse and 40% have faced physical abuse in the last 12 months.
• The NEU commissioned Place and Belonging in School: why it matters today[if !supportFootnotes][3] highlights the importance of trauma-informed approaches and fostering a sense of belonging to reduce behavioural incidents.

 

Conference believes:

 

• The current NEU behaviour policy guidance is outdated, focusing on post-pandemic reintegration and lacking robust protections for staff.
• Behaviour must be understood within the wider context of trauma, unmet needs, and exclusion.
• Zero tolerance policies adopted by some academy chains are punitive, ineffective, and often exacerbate exclusion.
• Behaviour policies must balance compassion for pupil need with robust protection for staff safety and wellbeing.
• Schools have a duty of care to protect staff from harm, and no educator should be expected to tolerate violence or abuse.

 

Conference instructs the Executive to:

 

• Conduct a comprehensive survey of NEU members to gather evidence on the scale and nature of behavioural issues, mirroring the NASUWT’s methodology.
• Develop updated NEU behaviour policy guidance that:
• Prioritises staff safety and wellbeing.
• Sets clear expectations for pupil conduct.
• Includes robust procedures for managing aggressive and disruptive behaviour.
• Promote trauma-informed and inclusive practices that support pupil wellbeing while maintaining high standards of behaviour.
• Campaign for increased funding and staffing to ensure schools can implement effective behaviour support systems and safeguard staff and pupils.

 

[if !supportFootnotes][1][endif] Evidence includes reports such as Behaviours that challenge and disrupt in schools across Wales: effective strategies and mitigations and Behaviour in Schools – Key Messages 2025 (UK)  as well as articles such as Teacher burnout and abuse in UK schools | IOSH magazine,

[if !supportFootnotes][1][endif] Behaviour in Schools – Key Messages 2025 (UK) https://nasuwt.org.uk/static/85dd91e3-f129-4534-8a28fa0e7968f94c/Behaviour-in-Schools-Key-Messages-2025-UK.pdf

[if !supportFootnotes]

[1]

[endif]

Belonging research booklet.pdf   https://neu.org.uk/sites/default/files/2023-04/Belonging%20research%20booklet.pdf

Taking Back the Curriculum: Educators Designing a Creative STEAM Future

Conference notes:

1. The NEU’s Arts and Mind campaign has highlighted the essential role of creativity and the arts in education.
2. Internationally, governments are embedding STEAM approaches to prepare young people for a rapidly changing world:

Japan’s 2020 “Society 5.0” curriculum promotes creativity and social innovation (MEXT, 2020).

Jamaica’s National STEAM Policy 2023–2028 commits five years of sustained investment (Ministry of Education & Youth, 2023).

Finland’s National Core Curriculum integrates interdisciplinary creative learning (Finnish National Agency for Education, 2016).

3. The World Economic Forum (2023) identifies creativity, analytical thinking and complex problem-solving as the top skills for the future workforce.

Conference believes:

ii. Curriculum reform must be educator-led, inclusive and evidence-based.

iii. Curriculum reform has too often been imposed on educators rather than led by them.

iv. A future English curriculum should integrate the arts with science and technology, valuing creativity, ethics, sustainability and cultural capital equally.

v. Every young person deserves a broad, creative and problem-solving education, free from the constraints of high-stakes testing.

vi. Excellent UK STEAM charities already bring this approach to schools but rely on short-term, precarious funding. Access to rich, creative learning should not depend on a postcode lottery or charitable goodwill.

The NEU is uniquely placed to lead this national conversation.

Conference instructs the Executive to:

1. Establish a time-limited National STEAM Working Group of educators, academics and community partners to propose an evidence-based vision for the English curriculum.
2. Publish a union-led report presenting this vision, drawing on international and UK case studies.
3. Host a national conference or online forum to share good practice and invite contributions from international partners.
4. Lobby and campaign for sustained government investment in STEAM learning and secure funding for school-community partnerships.
5. Reaffirm that curriculum and education lie at the heart of our union’s purpose, empowering educators to shape the future of learning.

(Word count ≈ 347)

Broad Left Conference Motions: Annual Conference 2026 will appear here.