Beth Colson interviews Dave Walker from Calm Mediation.
Classroom behaviour in our schools has reached what the NASUWT teachers’ union is calling a crisis point. Reports of teachers being punched, spat at, or verbally abused are commonplace according to their recent survey cited at last week’s annual conference. Nearly 40% of teachers say they’ve experienced physical assault in the past year, and 90% have been subjected to verbal abuse. Something is clearly not working in the culture of school discipline.
Peer Mediation is often an approach dismissed by some as too “soft”, but it may hold more power than many realise.
Calm Mediation’s Director Dave Walker MBE has spent the last 38 years resolving conflicts. For him, introducing ever-tougher sanctions won’t provide a solution to how to deal with escalating problems.
“Mediation or Restorative Justice are looked on as soft approaches,” he admits. “But they operate best when there are clear consequences for action.”
In other words, it’s not about replacing discipline. It’s about pairing it with meaningful dialogue.
Timing Is Everything
“If I was asked for three keys to resolving conflict,” Dave says, “I’d say: timing, timing, timing.”
That belief underpins much of his work at Calm Mediation, a London-based organisation that’s quietly reshaping how schools respond to conflict. Through Peer Mediation Projects, Calm trains young people to help resolve disputes among their peers, by equipping them with communication, listening, and problem-solving skills.
Rather than stepping in only after tensions explode, peer mediation offers a chance to intervene early. And that can sometimes be before teachers are even aware of an issue brewing.
“It’s an early alternative,” says Dave. “It gives young people space to talk about what happened, how it affected them, and how they want to move forward.”
After the Exclusion – What Next?
One of the recurring gaps in school discipline policies is what happens after an exclusion. For Dave, exclusion should not be seen as the end of a conflict. It should become the beginning of an opportunity.
“Say a student’s been excluded after a fight,” he explains. “When they return, that’s a key moment. Peer mediation lets them meet with the other student, with support, and talk about what led up to the incident, how it affected each of them, and how they’re going to manage things moving forward.”
This isn’t hypothetical. Dave describes how Calm Mediation works with schools to facilitate exactly these kinds of meeting and it invariably brings about powerful results. Their trained peer mediators, supported by experienced staff, are already helping rebuild relationships between students and even between parents and schools.
“We’ve mediated between parents whose children fell out,” he says. “And between schools and parents who were angry after an exclusion—some had even been barred after an incident. Mediation gave them a route back.”
A Necessary Layer to School Strategy
The NASUWT has expressed concern that restorative programmes may be used as a substitute for accountability. Dave believes that Peer Mediation, when done properly, reinforces behavioural boundaries.
“There must be consistency,” he says. “Staff, students and parents have to be clear on the rules, and there must be consequences. But there also needs to be an opportunity to understand the impact of behaviour and to find a way forward.”
Calm Mediation’s model doesn’t shy away from that balance. Peer Mediation projects ensure young people understand both sides of the conflict, reflect on their own role, and develop ways to avoid future escalation.
Collaboration Over Conflict
The strength of Calm’s approach lies in engaging a wider school community. Mediation isn’t just for students; it’s for parents too. And for Dave, this can be powerful.
“We must skill up parents,” he says. “Give them the tools to work with schools, not against them.”
That philosophy is embedded in Calm Mediation’s training sessions and workshops, which often include parents alongside staff and pupils. The goal is not just to reduce incidents but to shift the entire culture around conflict.
A Quiet Force with a Big Impact
Peer Mediation doesn’t tend to grab the headlines like metal detectors or escalating exclusion figures do, but it is changing lives and school environments. What’s more it’s doing this from the inside out. Calm Mediation helps embed this work in primary and secondary schools across the country, proving that when young people are given responsibility, they invariably rise to meet it.
In a school system under pressure, and sinking morale, Calm’s model can offer not just a programme. It’s a different mindset.
“Exclusion might end the lesson, but it doesn’t end the conflict.” says Dave
