Words Matter calls for action on childhood verbal abuse in education 

The report comes from an expert-led discussion at the House of Lords, chaired by Lord Jim Knight and sponsored by Jess Asato MP, which brought together more than 80 policymakers, education leaders, safeguarding professionals, researchers, clinicians and child development and mental health experts. It comes at a significant moment for recognition of the issue, with childhood verbal abuse explicitly referenced for the first time in Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) 2026.

Research found that two in five (41%) children in the UK experience verbal abuse by adults, with more than half experiencing it weekly and one in ten daily. It can have profound and lasting consequences for children's mental and physical health and development. Childhood verbal abuse is now recognised as the most prevalent form of child maltreatment. The report includes major new research by Words Matter with the UCL Institute of Education, providing important evidence on the importance of teacher–student communication in children's experience of school.

The research found that students who experienced harsh language reported feeling humiliated, losing confidence, feeling sad, becoming less interested in learning and feeling singled out, among other impacts. The report highlights that positive teacher–student relationships are at the heart of education. These relationships are built through everyday interactions and are two-way: teachers have a professional responsibility as adults working with children, while relationships are shaped by both teachers and students and by the wider culture and conditions in which schools operate. Positive relationships help children feel known, respected and valued, while enabling teachers to teach effectively and experience greater professional fulfilment. The report also discusses the importance of understanding neurodivergence and unconscious bias and how assumptions about children’s behaviour or needs can contribute to repeated criticism, correction or negative interactions.

The report sets out seven recommendations aimed at embedding the prevention of childhood verbal abuse across education and safeguarding:

1. Explicitly recognise childhood verbal abuse within education and safeguarding policy
2. Make positive teacher–pupil relationships a strategic priority for school improvement
3. Create school cultures where expectations and positive relationships reinforce one another
4. Support teachers to build and sustain positive relationships
5. Strengthen professional development on communication, relational practice and neurodivergence
6. Put children’s voices at the centre of prevention, recognition and repair
7. Create a national awareness campaign

Together, the recommendations seek to ensure that positive communication and relationships are embedded across safeguarding, behaviour, inclusion and school improvement, while giving teachers and other staff the knowledge, skills and support to build positive relationships and repair them when things go wrong.

Words Matter is already working with schools through its Words Matter Schools Programme, involving teachers, students and parents, and has developed practical resources to support positive, respectful communication with children and young people. There will also be a Twilight Talk, free for nasen members, on Wednesday 3rd March 2027 entitled ‘Communicating with Children to enable them to Thrive.’