Anti-bullying policy

General  behaviours which apply to all types of bullying

·           Physical aggression

·           Damage to property

·           Name calling

·           Slagging

·           The production, display or circulation of written words, pictures or other materials aimed at intimidating another person

·           Offensive graffiti

·           Extortion

·           Intimidation

·           Insulting or offensive gestures

·           The “look”

·           Invasion of personal space

·           A combination of any of the types listed.

Cyber

·           Harassment: Continually sending vicious, mean or disturbing messages to an individual

·           Impersonation: Posting offensive or aggressive messages under another person’s name

·           Flaming: Using inflammatory or vulgar words to provoke an online fight

·           Trickery: Fooling someone into sharing personal information which you then post online

·           Outing: Posting or sharing confidential or compromising information or images

·           Exclusion: Purposefully excluding someone from an online group

·           Cyber stalking: Ongoing harassment and denigration that causes a person considerable fear for his/her safety

·           Silent telephone/mobile phone call

·           Abusive telephone/mobile phone calls

·           Abusive text messages

·           Abusive email

·           Abusive communication on social networks e.g. Facebook/Ask.fm/ Twitter/You Tube or on games consoles

·           Abusive website comments/Blogs/Pictures

·           Abusive posts on any form of communication technology

Including any of the nine discriminatory grounds mentioned in Equality Legislation  (gender including transgender, civil status, family status, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, race and membership of the Traveller community).

Homophobic and Transgender

·           Taunting a person of a different sexual orientation

·           Name calling e.g. Gay, queer, lesbian…used in a derogatory manner

·           Physical intimidation or attacks

·           Threats

Race, nationality, ethnic background and membership of the Traveller  community

·           Exclusion on the basis of any of the above

Relational

·           Malicious gossip

·           Isolation & exclusion

·           Ignoring

·           Excluding from the group

·           Taking someone’s friends away

·           “Bitching”

·           Spreading rumours

·           Breaking confidence

·           Talking loud enough so that the victim can hear

·           The “look”

·           Use or terminology such as ‘nerd’ in a derogatory way

·           Harassment

Disability

·        Taunting others because of their disability or learning needs

·        Taking advantage of some pupils’ vulnerabilities and limited capacity to recognise and defend themselves against bullying

·        Taking advantage of some pupils’ vulnerabilities and limited capacity to understand social situations and social cues.

·        Mimicking a person’s disability

·        Setting others up for ridicule

The relevant teacher(s) for investigating and dealing with bullying is (are) as follows: (see Section 6.8 of the Anti-Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post-Primary Schools):

Class teacher or any member of teaching staff as necessary

·        A school-wide approach to the fostering of respect for all members of the school community.

·        The promotion of the value of diversity to address issues of prejudice and stereotyping, and highlight the unacceptability of bullying behaviour.

·        The fostering and enhancing of the self-esteem of all our pupils through both curricular and extracurricular activities. Pupils will be provided with opportunities to develop a positive sense of self-worth through formal and informal interactions.

·        Whole staff professional development on bullying to ensure that all staff develops an awareness of what bullying is, how it impacts on pupils’ lives and the need to respond to it-prevention and intervention.

·        An annual audit of professional development needs with a view to assessing  staff requirements  through internal staff knowledge/expertise and external sources

·        Professional development with specific focus on the training of the relevant teacher(s)

·        School wide awareness raising and training on all aspects of bullying, to include pupils, parent(s)/guardian(s) and the wider school community.

·        Supervision and monitoring of classrooms, corridors, school grounds, school tours and extra- curricular activities. Non-teaching and ancillary staff will be encouraged to be vigilant and report issues to relevant teachers. Supervision will also apply to monitoring student use of communication technology within the school.

·        The school’s anti-bullying policy is discussed with pupils and all parent(s)/guardian(s)s are given a copy as part of the Code of Behaviour of the school (every year).

·        The implementation of regular (e.g. per year/per term/per month/per week) whole school awareness measures e.g. a dedicated notice board in the school and classrooms on the promotion of friendship, and bullying prevention.

·        Encourage a culture of telling, with particular emphasis on the importance of bystanders. In that way pupils will gain confidence in ‘telling’. This confidence factor is of vital importance. It should be made clear to all pupils that when they report incidents of bullying they are not considered to be telling tales but are behaving responsibly.

·        Ensuring that pupils know who to tell and how to tell, e.g:

o   Direct approach to teacher at an appropriate time, for example after class.

o   Hand note up with homework.

o   Make a phone call to the school or to a trusted teacher in the school.

o   Get a parent(s)/guardian(s) or friend to tell on your behalf.

o   Administer a confidential questionnaire once a term to all pupils.

o   Ensure bystanders understand the importance of telling if they witness or know that bullying is taking place.

·        Identify clear protocols to encourage parent(s)/guardian(s) to approach the school if they suspect that their child is being bullied. The protocol should be developed in consultation with parents.

·        The development of an Acceptable Use Policy in the school to include the necessary steps to ensure that the access to technology within the school is strictly monitored, as is the pupils’ use of mobile phones.

·        The listing of supports currently being used in the school and the identification of other supports available to the school e.g. Stay Safe Programme, Walk Tall Programme and the assistance if required of our NEPS psychologist Angela Dowling Davenport.

Implementation of curricula

·        The full implementation of the SPHE and CSPE curricula and the RSE and Stay Safe Programmes.

·         Continuous Professional Development for staff in delivering these programmes.

·        School wide delivery of lessons on bullying from evidence based programmes, e.g. Stay Safe Programme, The Walk Tall Programme.

·        School wide delivery of lessons on Relational aggression, Cyber Bullying, Homophobic and Transphobic Bullying Diversity and Interculturalism.

·         Delivery of the Garda SPHE Programmes. These lessons will be delivered by Community Gardai covering issues around personal safety and cyber-bullying.

·        The school will specifically consider the additional needs of SEN pupils with regard to programme implementation and the development of skills and strategies to enable all pupils to respond appropriately.

·        The school will implement the advice in “Sexual Orientation advice for schools” (RSE Primary, see booklet).

               Links to other policies

·        Code of Behaviour

·         Child Protection policy

·         Supervision of pupils

·         Acceptable Use policy

·         Attendance

Procedures for Investigating and Dealing with Bullying

The primary aim in investigating and dealing with bullying is to resolve any issues and to restore, as far as is practicable, the relationships of the parties involved (rather than to apportion blame).

 Reporting bullying behaviour

·        Any pupil or parent(s)/guardian(s) may bring a bullying incident to any teacher in the school.

·        All reports, including anonymous reports of bullying, will be investigated and dealt with by the relevant teacher.

·        Teaching and non-teaching staff such as secretaries, special needs assistants (SNAs), bus escorts, caretakers, cleaners must report any incidents of bullying behaviour witnessed by them, or mentioned to them, to the relevant teacher;

Investigating and dealing with incidents: Style of approach

In investigating and dealing with bullying, the (relevant)teacher will exercise his/her professional judgement to determine whether bullying has occurred and how best the situation might be resolved;

·        Parent(s)/guardian(s) and pupils are required to co-operate with any investigation and assist the school in resolving any issues and restoring, as far as is practicable, the relationships of the parties involved as quickly as possible;

·         Teachers should take a calm, unemotional problem-solving approach.

·        Where possible incidents should  be investigated outside the classroom situation to ensure the privacy of all involved;

·         All interviews should be conducted with sensitivity and with due regard to the rights of all pupils concerned. Pupils who are not directly involved can also provide very useful information in this way;

·        When analysing incidents of bullying behaviour, the relevant teacher should seek answers to questions of what, where, when, who and why. This should be done in a calm manner, setting an example in dealing effectively with a conflict in a non-aggressive manner;

·         If a group is involved, each member should be interviewed individually at first. Thereafter, all those involved should be met as a group. At the group meeting, each member should be asked for his/her account of what happened to ensure that everyone in the group is clear about each other’s statements;

·         Each member of a group should be supported through the possible pressures that may face them from the other members of the group after the interview by the teacher;

It may also be appropriate or helpful to ask those involved to write down their account of the incident(s)

·         In cases where it has been determined by the relevant teacher that bullying behaviour has occurred, the parent(s)/guardian(s) of the parties involved should be contacted at an early stage to inform them of the matter and explain the actions being taken (by reference to the school policy). The school should give parent(s)/guardian(s) an opportunity of discussing ways in which they can reinforce or support the actions being taken by the school and the supports provided to the pupils;

·         Where the relevant teacher has determined that a pupil has been engaged in bullying behaviour, it should be made clear to him/her how he/she is in breach of the school’s anti-bullying policy and efforts should be made to try to get him/her to see the situation from the perspective of the pupil being bullied;

·         It must also be made clear to all involved (each set of pupils and parent(s)/guardian(s)) that in any situation where disciplinary sanctions are required, this is a private matter between the pupil being disciplined, his or her parent(s)/guardian(s) and the school;

Follow up and recording

·        In determining whether a bullying case has been adequately and appropriately addressed the relevant teacher must, as part of his/her professional judgement, take the following factors into account:

– Whether the bullying behaviour has ceased;

– Whether any issues between the parties have been resolved as far as is practicable;

-Whether the relationships between the parties have been restored as far as is practicable;

-Any feedback received from the parties involved, their parent(s)/guardian(s)s or the school Principal or Deputy Principal

·         Follow-up meetings with the relevant parties involved will be arranged separately with a view to possibly bringing them together at a later date if the pupil who has been bullied is ready and agreeable.

·        Where a parent(s)/guardian(s) is not satisfied that the school has dealt with a bullying case in accordance with these procedures, the parent(s)/guardian(s) will be referred, as appropriate, to the school’s complaints procedures.

·        In the event that a parent(s)/guardian(s) has exhausted the school’s complaints procedures and is still not satisfied, the school will advise the parent(s)/guardian(s) of their right to make a complaint to the Ombudsman for Children.

Recording of bullying behaviour

It is imperative that all recording of bullying incidents must be done in an objective and factual manner.

The school’s procedures for noting and reporting bullying behaviour are as follows:

       Informal- pre-determination that bullying has occurred

·        All staff must keep a written record of any incidents witnessed by them or notified to them.  All incidents must be reported to the relevant teacher.

·        While all reports, including anonymous reports of bullying must be investigated and dealt with by the relevant teacher, the relevant teacher must keep a written record of the reports, the actions taken and any discussions with those involved regarding same

·        The relevant teacher must inform the principal of all incidents being investigated.

       Formal Stage 1-determination that bullying has occurred

·        If it is established by the relevant teacher that bullying has occurred, the relevant teacher must keep appropriate written records which will assist his/her efforts to resolve the issues and restore, as far as is practicable, the relationships of the parties involved.

·        These records will be kept in the filing cabinet in the office.

         Formal Stage 2-Appendix 3 (From DES Procedures)

The relevant teacher must use the recording template at Appendix 3 to record the bullying behaviour in the following circumstances:

a) in cases where he/she considers that the bullying behaviour has not been adequately and appropriately addressed within 20 school days after he/she has determined that bullying behaviour occurred; and

b) Where the school has decided as part of its anti-bullying policy that in certain circumstances bullying behaviour must be recorded and reported immediately to the Principal or Deputy Principal as applicable.

The behaviours that must be recorded and reported immediately to the principal are:

·        Physical aggression; pushing, shoving, kicking, punching, scratching with fingernails, prodding with pencils etc.

·        Damage to property (clothes/contents of school bag), breaking, stealing or hiding them.

·        Extortion-demands for lunches, money or personal items.

·        Intimidation; verbal threats, aggressive body language or facial threats, sniggering, whispering etc.

·        Isolation: excluding or ignoring of others, insulting remarks, passing notes about people.

·        Personal remarks: about appearance, weight, clothes, hygiene, family or remarks of a sexual nature.

·        Abusive or anonymous phone calls to pupils or teachers.

·        Bullying of school personnel-physical assault, damage to property, verbal abusive and threats to family etc.

When the recording template is used, it must be retained by the relevant teacher in question and a copy maintained by the principal. Records will be kept in the office filing cabinet and can be assessed by the principal, the deputy principal and the relevant teacher.  Decisions around record keeping should be noted in this policy.

Established intervention strategies

·        Teacher interviews with all pupils

·        Negotiating agreements between pupils and following these up by monitoring progress. This can be on an informal basis or implemented through a more structured mediation process

·        Working with parent(s)/guardian(s)s to support school interventions

·        No Blame Approach

·        Circle Time

·        Restorative interviews

·        Restorative conferencing

·        Implementing sociogram questionnaires

·        Peer mediation where suitable training has been given

The Procedures mention the following intervention strategies and reference Ken Rigby;

www.bullyingawarenessweek.org/pdf/BullyingPreventionStrategiesinSchools Ken Rigby.pdf

·        The traditional disciplinary approach

·        Strengthening the victim

·        Mediation

·        Restorative Practice

·        The Support Group Method

·        The Method of Shared Concern

There will be training in the coming school year for these intervention strategies.

·        All in-school supports and opportunities will be provided for the pupils affected by bullying to participate in activities designed to raise their self-esteem, to develop friendships and social skills and build resilience e.g.

–         Stay Safe Programme

–         Walk tall Programme.

·        If pupils require counselling of further supports the school will endeavour to liaise with the appropriate agencies to organise same (NEPS psychologist Angela Dowling Davenport). This may be for the pupil affected by bullying or involved in the bullying behaviour.

·        Pupils should understand that there are no innocent bystanders and that all incidents of bullying behaviour must be reported to a teacher.