France's school protests are about more than broken classrooms

Hundreds of thousands of students have protested across France since the end of last month

As dustbins burn and students chant "everyone hates the police" in the French city of Lille, one teenager explains why he and his friends have taken to the streets.

"We've got 50 minutes to eat at lunchtime but there are 2,000 of us that need to get through the canteen."

Despite the government's apparent attempts to make concessions, the students show no sign of backing down.

The protests, which have turned violent, have become a focal point in France's polarised politics, with all sides accusing the other of escalating tensions. As a presidential election approaches, politicians on both the hard right and hard left have sought to capitalise on the unrest and on what many see as the government's inability to resolve the crisis.

Massicella, second left, and her friends have been protesting in Lille

The protests - ignited at the Lycée Antoine-de-Saint-Exupéry in the deprived Paris suburb of Créteil - have struck a chord across the country.

The anger has also focused on long school hours, chronic staff shortages, overcrowded classes and a deeply unpopular university admissions system.

The problem for the French government - which became clearer as we spoke to dozens of pupils this week - is that even if a tiny minority of schools have a problem with rodents, a very large number of pupils believe their own education is failing them.

But it is not just students taking to the streets - their teachers are joining them.

It has become normal for pupils to start at 8am and finish as late as 6pm, but the days are punctuated by hours-long gaps because of bad planning and staff shortages.

"It's now impossible to give every child the attention they deserve," Monins explains.