Bullying
Every school has an anti-bullying policy. The policy includes information such as:
- what are the different kinds of bullying (e.g. physical, verbal, emotional)
- who to contact if your child is being bullied
- any services that offer support to pupils who are being bullied
For more information, or to receive a copy of the school’s guidelines, contact the school directly. For contact details go to the Schools' Contact Information.
Bullying is...
- deliberately hurtful behaviour that is repeated over time
- it can be spoken, physical or emotional
- it can happen at school or outside school
Bullying involves someone using their power over someone else.
It can include:
- threats and physical violence
- name calling
- damage to property
- leaving pupils out of social activities deliberately
- spreading rumours
- upsetting text or e-mail messages
Bullying isn't...
- quarrelling with friends
- short term arguments
- occasional teasing
- bickering
- 1 in 2 students say that they have been bullied in any school term
- nearly half of secondary school students feel that their teachers are unaware of the bullying that goes on
- for five years running it's been the most common reason people call Childline
Talking to your child
Your child may not directly tell you that they are being bullied but may seem unhappy and suddenly not want to go to school.
Try to find out if there is a problem by talking to them about:
- their school work
- friends
- what they do at break and lunchtime
- any problems or worries they have
Finding out your child is being bullied can be very hard, but try to remain calm and talk to them about what is happening:
- make a note of what they say has happened; who was there, where, when, and how often
- reassure them that they did the right thing by telling you
- tell them to report the bullying to a teacher immediately
- contact your child's school about the bullying and ask to see their policy on bullying so that you are aware of what will be happening
- stay in touch with the school; let them know whether the bullying stops or is still happening
- if the bullying is really serious, contact your local police station; the police take any report of bullying very seriously.
- get them to show you any messages they've received
- tell them to never respond to an internet bully in a chat room, and never respond to abusive text messages
- make sure they stick to moderated chat rooms
- if bullying or abuse starts in a chat room, tell them to leave immediately and tell you
- tell them to never to give out personal contact details online
Many people may be bullies and not even know it. Your child could become an accidental bully by:
- passing on a nasty text about someone
- laughing at an unkind comment
- it's easier to be an accidental bully if it involves email, text etc. because they aren't doing anything directly
If your child is bullying
- they could be copying the behaviour of other people in the family, neighbourhood or friends
- friends of theirs may be encouraging the bullying behaviour
- your child may be going through a difficult time and as a result acting aggressively towards others
To stop your child bullying
- encourage your child to admit what they're doing - it takes a lot of courage for them to admit that they are wrong
- explain to your child that the way they are behaving is not acceptable and making other people unhappy
- encourage your child to apologise to the person they've hurt
- show your child how to join in with others without bullying
- speak to your child's school about how you can work together to stop the bullying
- check regularly with your child about how things are at school
- give your child praise when they are cooperative and kind to others
- encourage your child to help others if they see them being bullied and encourage them to tell a teacher or an adult they trust