Schools have been forced to suspend thousands of pupils as they try to tackle low-level violence in the classroom and playground.

Official statistics show that in some boroughs as many as 500 children over a two year period have been temporarily excluded for hitting another pupil.

In Croydon there were 323 pupils suspended last year for physically assaulting another classmate, while in Lambeth 277 pupils received the same punishment.

Wandsworth saw one of the largest increases in the local Guardian area with a 40 percent increase in suspensions rising from 186 in 2005/06 to 263 in 2006/07.

Richmond and Merton both saw large rises in exclusions while Kingston and Sutton both saw small drops.

The figures, published in June this year, showed that more than 2,200 children were excluded from school in England every school day, most temporarily.

Commenting on the national figures shadow children's minister Michael Gove said: "This is further evidence of the lack of discipline in our schools. It is vital that teachers are given control over the classroom so they can deal with bad behaviour before it escalates into violence.

"We will change the law to give teachers unequivocal powers to maintain discipline.

"Heads need the power to expel children who are violent to others without the possibility of seeing that child returned to the school."

A spokeswoman for the Department for Children, Schools and Families said: "These figures show that teachers are using the powers we have given them to give short, sharp shocks to control discipline."

Suspensions in the last two school years recorded 2005/06 and 2006/07.

Lambeth 513 Wandsworth 449 Sutton 559 Richmond 282 Merton 545 Kingston 227 Croydon 571 Surrey (which includes Elmbridge) 2,439