Classroom war - Telegraph Figures published yesterday by the Howard League for Penal Reform give the impression that the nation's schools are hotbeds of criminality. Last year in England and Wales, more than 200,000 children were arrested by the police - 2,117 of them aged just 10. Yet only a quarter were charged with a criminal offence; the rest were arrested for little more than pranks or mischief. In Sussex, four youngsters were arrested for throwing sticks at a chestnut tree, presumably to knock down conkers. An 11-year-old was arrested on suspicion of committing a "hate crime" after calling a classmate "gay." Much of this sounds more like Just William than serious delinquency, and the police response can seem heavy-handed - many of those arrested are required to have their fingerprints taken and to provide DNA samples. Yet it is easy to see why it happens. Too often, the police are being asked to intercede in incidents inside our schools that in the past would have been sorted out by members of staff. However, teachers have become understandably wary of intervening physically in playground fights in case they face legal action or even physical violence, whether from the child or an aggressive parent. The Coalition issued useful new guidance a year ago making it clear that teachers can use physical restraint - accompanied by seven pages of detail that includes the less-than-comforting advice that if teachers follow the rules, "this will provide a defence to any criminal prosecution or other civil or public law action." Teachers deserve more robust support than this. When they are required to keep order in the classroom or playground, they have the right to expect the law to be unambiguously on their side. Until that happens, it is hardly surprising that they will be more likely to call in the police.