Vol. 509 No. 6
645 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Education and Science if he will provide funds to cover the expenses of activities, for example, research and support services to teachers and schools and other activities designed to develop effective policies to deal with bullying of teachers such as that recently revealed in a TUI survey; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21838/99]
My Department keeps the adequacy and effectiveness of the measures in place to assist schools in dealing with incidents of bullying behaviour under ongoing review.
With regard to existing support services in this area, my Department has established the employee assistance scheme for teachers on a pilot basis. Employee assistance officers provide a confidential support and advice service to teachers in situations where they encounter difficulties such as bullying in their workplace. The National Educational Psychological Service is also available as a support service to schools where difficulties occur.
In addition, my Department has also agreed to fund a TUI initiative in the training of trainers in the area of bullying and the question of further initiatives in this area will be kept under consideration.
