Anti Bullying

What is bullying?

Bullying is when someone intimidates or causes harm to another person on purpose. The victims of bullying can be verbally, physically or emotionally assaulted and are often threatened and made to feel frightened. Bullying should not be viewed as an unfortunate but unavoidable part of school life. No child deserves to be bullied – it’s unacceptable behaviour and can have a devastating effect on the victim. Most schools have an anti-bullying policy, so it’s a good idea to be aware of the position adopted by your child’s school.

Bullying in school can include:

• verbal harassment – face to face, by phone, text or over the internet
• hitting, hair-pulling and kicking
• teasing and name-calling
• spreading rumours
• damaging possessions
• frightening and intimidation
• exclusion at playtime or from social events and networks

How can I tell if my child is being bullied? Your child may not tell you that he or she is being bullied. However, you may notice some changes in his or her behaviour, including:

• unwillingness to go to school
• feeling unwell, often with a headache
• irritability
• anxiety
• aggression towards you or others in your family
• bed wetting
• waking in the night
• missing or damaged belongings

Our Strategies

• All staff and students are aware of behaviour, which is considered to be bullying. When incidents of bullying are reported they are always be taken seriously. A wide range of strategies addressing the problems of both victims and bullies are in place to deal with any incidents of bullying along with intervention strategies. There is regular supervision of areas of the school where there might be particular opportunities for bullying to occur.

  Parents and the Wider Community

  Parents of all students involved in any incidents of bullying will be informed at the earliest possible moment. The School will attempt to inform the wider community of our policy and encourage them to support it. We will organise workshops for parents to come and discuss issues of bullying and preventative approaches.

  Staff Training

  All staff have access to appropriate safeguarding training. It is the responsibility of all staff to support students who have been bullied: both the victims and perpetrators and to ensure that all incidents are reported to the Head Teacher.

Responsibilities

All students have a responsibility to help victims of bullying by talking to them and by saying no to bullying. They should try to tell the bullies (with support where necessary) why what they are doing is wrong and should tell a teacher, member of staff so that something can be done about it. Parents can support children by listening to their concerns and reassuring them that the matter will be dealt with.