While you were all opening your Christmas cards at the end of last year, first minister Nicola Sturgeon was opening letters that were…let’s say, less joyful.

In October, she asked teachers in Scotland to write to her and tell her about their experiences of working in the profession.

And, as you can imagine, the letters - now released under a freedom of information request from the Scottish Conservatives - didn’t make for happy reading.

One teacher wrote: “The class teacher was hit, I was kicked and punched. My amazing support staff were subject to repeated kicks to the stomach and were bitten.”

Another wrote: “The best teacher I have ever seen left last year due to paperwork and sheer unmanageable workload ... something must be done before there are no teachers left.”

And one letter stated: “We share a headteacher but she is available less and less to manage our school as the workload at our cluster school is ever-increasing due to cuts in support staff, social services, primary mental health services, speech and language - the list goes on.”

Liz Smith MSP, Scottish Conservative shadow education secretary, said that the letters spoke for themselves, and that the growing level of violence in classrooms was particularly worrying.

She added: “It is also interesting to note from the letters that teachers believe some of the problem is created by the well-intentioned, but nonetheless increasingly problematic, policy which encourages local authorities to mainstream all pupils wherever possible. In far too many cases, pupils with particular support needs are in classes which cannot possibly provide them with the support they need.”

In response, education secretary John Swinney assured teachers that the Scottish government was working towards improving conditions. “No teacher should have to suffer abuse in the workplace, and we want all pupils to behave in a respectful manner towards their peers and staff,” he said.