Reports of violence in Swedish schools rise significantly in 5 years

The amount of reported cases of physical violence in Swedish schools has increased by 129 percent between 2012 and 2017, the Swedish Television SVT reported on Saturday.

According to SVT's investigation, the trend continues in 2018. During this year, the Swedish Work Environment Authority has already received 544 reports of violence compared to 2017 when there were 474 reports in total.

Reported crimes include threat, robbery and physical violence that take place in Swedish primary and secondary schools. The biggest increase can be seen in acts of physical violence.

Whether violence has actually increased in primary and secondary schools is unclear. According to SVT, the amount of reported cases does not give the entire picture because people's will to report serious events may vary over time.

"I do not know if threats and violence have increased in schools. We only know the amount of reported cases," Kjell Blom from the Swedish Work Environment Authority told SVT.

The total amount of violence crimes is unknown because there is no information on how many students refrain from telling about threats, robbery and violence. Some employees may also refuse to report events even though they are obliged by the law to do so.