School Policies

Anti-bullying Policy

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This policy has been formulated by the Policy Sub-Committee of the Board of Management in the Autumn term of 2005. This sub-committee comprised of parents and teachers.

This policy should be read in conjunction with other relevant policies – Health and Safety Policy and The Code of Behaviour – and with the school information booklet.

Copies of this policy will be given to each member of staff, parents, those responsible for after-school activities and sibling after-care, the driver of the school bus, swimming instructors and to members of the Board of Management.

December 2005.


Rationale:

The review of the existing Anti-Bullying Policy is in line with Department of Education and Science and INTO guidelines. This review and the development of a new policy relevant to the current needs of the school have been identified as a priority by staff and the Board of Management.

The policy will build on our current practice, where children are encouraged to report all acts of unacceptable behaviour towards them to a supervising adult in school, and to their parents at home. It will stress the need to prevent and not just control bullying behaviour.

Relationship to characteristic spirit of the school:

Our school believes that no child or adult is an outsider and members of the school community (the staff, parents and children) work together to create a positive environment, in which all are valued. It is important that everyone is aware of bullying and its potential impact on individual children, classes, teachers and families and that this form of behaviour is contrary to our expectation that adults and children should be kind, courteous and respectful in their dealings with others.

Aims:

The aims of this policy are to:

  • Raise awareness of bullying as a form of unacceptable behaviour within the school community, including the Board of Management, teaching and non-teaching staff, parents/guardians and all people who are involved in any way with school and after-school activities.
  • Create a school ethos which encourages children and adults to disclose and discuss incidents of bullying.
  • Enable staff and parents to maintain a consistent approach to bullying.
  • Provide new members of staff with clear information.
  • Devise measures to prevent and deal with bullying behaviour.

1.
Content:

Who might experience bullying behaviour?

Potentially any member of the school community could do so - children, members of staff, parents. We all need to be aware. 

Parent/Staff Relationships

It is important that any communication between parents and school staff, whether this be verbal, written or by telephone, should be courteous and respectful on both sides. In case of difficulty a solution should be sought in an informal way between the individuals concerned. If the matter is not resolved the person/s concerned should approach

(a) The Principal, (b) the Chairperson of the board of management or (c) the Board of Management with a view to resolving the problem.

Staff relations

The document Working Together, which has been adopted by the Board of Management and circulated to school staff, covers staff relations. 

The rest of this document seeks to ensure that children have a learning environment free from bullying.

Risk Assessment

What is Bullying?

Definition: Bullying is repeated aggression, verbal, psychological or physical; conducted by an individual or group against others. It can take many forms but its aim is always to make a person or group feel intimidated or afraid. It is important to note that isolated incidents of aggressive behaviour – while they are not condoned – cannot be described as bullying. However it is bullying when the behaviour is systematic and ongoing.

Children should be made aware of the difference between friendship groups and cliques. Disputes and bullying can escalate when clique members side together even when they know it isn't right. Friendship and divided loyalties can put unfair pressures on children.

What are the most common types of bullying?

These are types of bullying behaviour that are deemed to be unacceptable:

Physical: pushing, shoving, kicking, hitting

Verbal: name-calling, teasing, insulting, humiliating, sarcastic comments

Emotional: making threats, spreading rumours, excluding, ignoring

Non-Verbal: making suggestive, provocative or intimidating gestures or glances

Personal Property: threats against or damage to a person’s property

Messages/Images: sending threatening or upsetting messages or images, communicating in person by phone or in writing in a threatening or aggressive way

Behaviour of staff towards pupils

Members of staff should treat children in a way that is fair and equal.

Any physical contact should be non threatening and respectful.

Reasonable correction of pupils as a means of implementing the Code of Behaviour should not be considered as bullying.

Behaviour of pupils towards staff

Pupils should not disrupt a class in such a way as to deliberately undermine a teacher.

Pupils should not make fun of, or make rude comments about, members of staff.

Behaviour which is unacceptable, will be dealt under the code of behaviour. Only if it is very obvious that such behaviour is deliberately designed to continuously disrupt the teacher’s work will it be dealt with under the Anti-Bullying code.

What can the school community do about bullying?

Raise awareness

The school will actively work to raise awareness of bullying behaviour. This will be an ongoing process and will occur through a range of activities. It is important that this process is shared by teaching and non-teaching staff, parents/guardians and those involved in after-school activities. These will involve recognising what is bullying and what is playful.

Make children aware of what they can do if they’re being bullied by:

  • Recognising that they don’t have to put up with bullying behaviour.
  • Asking for help to break the silence about being bullied and telling someone they trust.
  • Looking for help from an adult they can trust if another adult is bullying them.
  • Learning strategies to cope with bullying behaviour such as:
    • Trying not to show that they are upset or angry
    • Choosing when to resist and knowing when the only sensible thing to do is to give in. How to get away, to tell someone.
    • Practicing assertiveness, to feel stronger and more confident.

Make children aware that bullying behaviour is unacceptable by helping them to:

· Realise that it is the behaviour and not the person that is unacceptable.

· Recognise that types of behaviour that are hurtful to others.

· Know that feeling good shouldn't mean having to make someone else feel bad.

· Behave in ways which show kindness, respect and tolerance to others.

Make adults, parents/guardians, teaching and after-school staff, aware of the signs in children that indicate they may be victims of bullying behaviour:

Signs can include:

  • Unexplained bruises.
  • Fear and anxiety when going to or coming from school.
  • School performance steadily getting worse.
  • Being generally nervous, tense and/or unhappy.
  • Not explaining suspicious incidents.
  • Signs of being isolated from others of the same age.
  • Signs of regular interference with personal property, books, etc.
  • Frequently asking for (or perhaps stealing) money.

Make adults, parents/guardians, teaching and after-school staff, aware of the signs in children that indicate they may be engaging in bullying behaviour:

Signs can include:

  • A tendency to bully family members.
  • Being a victim of bullying.
  • Regularly witnessing bullying behaviour in their environment.
  • Being frequently short-tempered and/or aggressive.
  • Having past experiences which can still cause negative feelings.
  • Bringing home items that you know weren't bought.
  • Speaking of others in a negative way – perhaps in relation to their appearance or beliefs or social status.
  • Showing an interest in violent behaviour
  • Showing little sensitivity towards others.
  • Having low self-esteem.

Although these signs can also indicate problems other than being bullied or engaging in bullying behaviour, it’s important that you don’t ignore them. Try to encourage the child to talk about what’s going on, whether to you or to another trusted adult.

The Role of Parents and Guardians

It is important to note that children spend most of their time outside the immediate environs of the school. Therefore, parents and guardians have a responsibility to reaffirm the anti-bullying ethos of school. This is best done in as calm and unemotional a manner as possible. 

It is also important not to use the term ‘bullying’ inappropriately. It does not usually apply to a “one-off incident. Rather it is part of a pattern of behaviour, as already defined.

Parents should avoid encouraging their children to respond to bullying in an aggressive way, as this can aggravate the situation.

What will be done about bullying behaviour?

  • Children should discuss any incident of bullying behaviour with their parents/guardians, their class teacher, or another trusted adult in the school community. This is behaving responsibly and is not telling tales.
  • Parents should talk to the class teacher if they have concerns about incidents of bullying behaviour which they might suspect or that have come to their attention through their children or other parents.
  • Non-teaching staff should report any incident of bullying behaviour witnessed by them or disclosed to them, to the class teacher of the child or children concerned.

Procedures for noting, reporting and investigating incidents of bullying behaviour:

All incidents of bullying behaviour which are drawn to the attention of a teacher will be dealt with in the following manner:

  • The teacher will interview all the children involved in the incident. However in a more serious incident of bullying (e.g.: gross misbehaviour or physical assault), the issue will be referred immediately to the Principal or Deputy Principal.
  • All interviews will be conducted with sensitivity and with due regard to the rights of all children involved.
  • Interviews will be conducted using a problem-solving approach, in a calm, unemotional manner and seek answers to the questions: What? Where? When? Who? and Why?
    • The alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator/s of the incident will be spoken to and encouraged to solve the problem.
  • If a pupil has engaged in bullying behaviour, it will be made clear to him/her how s/he is in breach of the Code of Behaviour and the Anti-Bullying Policy. S/he will be encouraged to see the situation from the victim’s point of view and
    • Where the incident is deemed to be minor, a verbal warning will be given to stop the bullying behaviour. S/he will be expected to give a full apology. If deemed appropriate, parents of the victim and of the perpetrator/s will be contacted and informed.
    • If the bullying behaviour persists, the Principal or Deputy principal and the parents/guardians of the victim/s or perpetrator will be informed. An informal meeting will take place, which may include the principal. This will provide an opportunity to discuss the incident and support the children involved. 
    • Where the incident is deemed to be serious (e.g. serious misbehaviour or physical assault) the principal will be informed immediately and will take appropriate action. This may involve a formal meeting between the Principal, class teacher parents/guardians.
    • A record will be kept of all incidents of bullying behaviour and of the procedures that were followed.
    • Where appropriate, the alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator/s will be asked to write down any relevant details of the incident and these will be attached to the records.

· Sanctions for bullying in line with Code of Behaviour may include:

o Verbal warning

o Loss of privileges

o Written apology from perpetrator signed by Parent/Guardian

o Suspension

o Expulsion

* This is in accordance with the National Education Welfare Board guidelines and fulfils the school ‘s obligations under Section 24 of the Education Welfare Act, 2000. If a BoM decides to expel a pupil, parents/ guardians have a right of appeal to the Secretary General of the DES under Section 29 of the Education Act 1998.

· Where incidents of bullying behaviour remain unresolved at school level the, the matter will be referred to BOM

· False allegations of bullying behaviour will be dealt with seriously.

Success Criteria:

The existence of a shared view by the school community, that bullying behaviour by adults or children is not acceptable. 

The ability of children to talk to adults about incidents of Bullying behaviour.

The ability of Guardians/Parents to support their children if they have bullied or have been bullied.

Roles and Responsibilities:

The principal and teaching staff are responsible for ensuring that the policy is implemented. This needs to be supported by Parents/Guardians, pupils, those involved in after-school activities and the Board of Management.

Ratification and Communication:

This policy has been circulated for discussion and comment to all members of the school community. On completion of this process the Board of Management ratified the policy for implementation in March 2006.

Review

The policy will be reviewed in January 2008. The implementation of the policy will be monitored by the teaching staff and Board of Management and through feedback from parents.