A teacher in the east of England was awarded almost quarter of a million pounds in compensation after falling while putting up a class display.

According to the Press Association, the teacher received a settlement of almost £250,000 after losing her balance and falling while using a table and chair to put up the work.

The teacher suffered a fracture in the fall, which also aggravated the symptoms of her foot fibromyalgia and depressive illness, according to her union - the National Union of Teachers (NUT) section of the National Education Union (NEU).

The injuries prevented the teacher from working and her contract was terminated.

A case was brought against the local authority for failing to provide proper work equipment.

The six-figure pay-out was among cases in which education workers were awarded settlements for accidents on school property.

They included almost £85,000 for a teacher who slipped on black ice, and £60,000 for another who fell on spilled food and liquid.

New compensation data published by teaching unions also shows that in one case, an academy worker was awarded nearly £50,000 after being assaulted by a teenage girl who had been told to stop chewing gum.

And a trainee teacher was given a £35,000 settlement following claims she had been dismissed or discriminated against because of her pregnancy.

One union boss warned they are seeing a significant increase in members from groups with characteristics protected by law, such as age, disability and race, being subjected to discriminatory treatment.

NASUWT general secretary Chris Keates said: 'Not only does the union continue to pursue employers who are negligent in terms of the health and welfare of members, but we are also now seeing a significant increase in the number of members with protected characteristics being subjected to discriminatory treatment.

'The scale of discrimination and prejudice is deeply disturbing and it is likely that this is only the tip of the iceberg.'

Figures showed the union successfully secured more than £16m in compensation payouts for its members during the last year.

The cases include a 55-year-old teacher who received a settlement just short of £85,000 when she slipped on untreated black ice at her classroom door, after her employer's insurers initially refused to negotiate compensation.

Elsewhere a 53-year-old teacher from Essex was awarded £60,000 after she slipped and fell on a food and liquid spillage as she made her way from a science lab.