Skip to main content
Normal View

Seanad Éireann debate -
Thursday, 26 Sep 2013

Vol. 226 No. 5

Tackling Bullying in Schools: Statements

I am delighted to have the opportunity to update the Members of the Seanad on the work being done to help prevent and tackle bullying in schools. The programme for Government includes a commitment to encourage schools to develop anti-bullying policies and, in particular, strategies to combat homophobic bullying to support students. Since my appointment as Minister, I have believed delivering on that commitment is one of the most important actions we can take. We all know people who are victims of bullying, whether directly or indirectly. My commitment is to support the well-being of students and ensure all children have happy experiences of school.

During my first couple of months in office I committed to re-examining the guidelines issued to schools on bullying. I also began exploring the idea of a working group that would draft a roadmap towards the elimination of bullying in schools.

In May 2012, with the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Frances Fitzgerald, I hosted a forum on bullying which allowed interested parties to come together and share ideas about how bullying could be tackled in schools. I also announced the creation of a working group, under the chairmanship of Ms Deirdre McDonnell, principal officer in the Department of Education and Skills. The working group included representatives from interested NGOs as well as representatives from various sections of the Department and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.

The action plan set out 12 actions to help prevent and tackle bullying in primary and second level schools. The plan made clear that preventing and tackling bullying requires support from parents and wider society and is not a problem schools can solve alone. This point must be emphasised. Among the 12 actions recommended by the working group are the following: proposals to support a media campaign focused on cyberbullying specifically targeted at young people as part of safer Internet day 2013; the establishment of a new national anti-bullying website; beginning immediate development of new national anti-bullying procedures for all schools; devising a co-ordinated plan of training for parents and school boards of management; providing Department of Education and Skills support for the Stand Up! awareness week against homophobic bullying organised by BeLonG To youth services; and reviewing teacher education support service provision to identify what training and continuous professional development teachers may need to help them effectively tackle bullying. A new, ring-fenced budget of €500,000 will be spent ensuring we deliver on all 12 of these actions. The anti-bullying procedures I launched on 13 September represent the conclusion of one of these actions, and other actions, including awareness raising campaigns on cyberbullying and homophobic bullying, are already under way.

The new anti-bullying procedures are not the whole answer to this complex problem, nor are they intended to be. The procedures will apply to all 4,000 primary and post-primary schools, encompassing a population of almost 900,000 young citizens. The procedures provide a great opportunity to reinvigorate and strengthen our approach to preventing and tackling bullying in schools. The key elements of the procedures include a strong emphasis on the prevention of bullying behaviour through the fostering and development of a positive school culture and climate based on inclusivity and respect, and a school-wide approach to preventing and tackling bullying behaviour; this is not "somebody's" responsibility it is everybody's responsibility. There is also a requirement for all schools to adhere to the standardised policy template for developing their anti-bullying policy, and greater transparency for parents and pupils through the requirement for schools to publish their anti-bullying policy on the school's website and give it to the parents' association. It is made clear that the definition of bullying includes cyberbullying and identity-based bullying such as homophobic and racist bullying. There are also practical tips for building a positive school culture and climate based on inclusivity and respect, and clear procedures for investigating, recording and dealing with bullying, a point to which I will return.

The procedures emphasise the primary aim in investigating and dealing with bullying is to resolve issues and restore as far as practicable the relationships of the parties involved rather than to apportion blame. It is about getting back to where we need and want to be rather than looking for culprits. Oversight arrangements will involve the school principal reporting regularly to the board of management and will require the board to annually review the school's anti-bullying policy and its implementation. Confirmation the annual review was done must be provided for the parents' association and published on the school's website.

The procedures are written in a user-friendly manner and focus in a very practical way on what schools must do to prevent and deal with bullying. The key is to get the basics right in all 4,000 schools. Many schools already do this very well and the new procedures will simply underpin and improve what they already do. For those schools which are not as good at dealing with bullying the new procedures will provide a bullying policy template and practical guidance and tips so they are clear on what they have to do.

Arising from the commitments in the action plan on bullying, the inspectorate will place a stronger focus on the actions schools take to create a positive school culture and to prevent and tackle bullying. These procedures update guidelines first issued to schools in the previous century, in 1993. The new procedures were developed following consultation with the relevant education partners, and I thank them for their input. These procedures will be effective in tackling a problem which affects every community in Ireland. Much of the media focus at present is on cyberbullying. This type of bullying is increasingly common and is continuously evolving. Access to technology means cyberbullying can happen any time or any place. The best way to address cyberbullying is to prevent it happening in the first place. The procedures make clear the focus of any prevention and education awareness measures in schools on cyberbullying should be on educating pupils on how to stay safe while online, and on developing a culture of reporting any concerns about cyberbullying. It is also important to note schools cannot solve all the ills of the world. Parents, pupils and wider society have an important role to play in preventing and tackling cyberbullying.

As part of our follow-through on the other actions in the action plan, I announced last week that €40,000 will be provided to support the delivery of up to 70 anti-bullying training sessions for parents between now and the end of the year. The anti-bullying parent training programme is run jointly by the National Parents Council Primary and the National Parents Council Post Primary. The initiative has been developed to support the implementation of the action plan on bullying which called for training and resources for parents and boards of management. I sincerely hope parents will take the time to attend these valuable training sessions. If Senators have influence or access to schools I ask them to encourage parents to do so.

Bullying is not a problem schools can, or should be left to, tackle alone. Parents, families and the wider community have an equally important role to play in tackling all forms of bullying and in teaching children how to manage relationships, be resilient and have empathy and respect for others. The anti-bullying parent training programme will be available nationwide. It will be a two and half hour session to help parents support their children regarding issues of bullying, and to inform them about the new anti-bullying procedures for primary and post-primary schools. These training sessions will mean parents will be better equipped with knowledge to support their children in issues relating to bullying. The National Parents Council Primary and the National Parents Council Post Primary are also developing an information leaflet for parents who attend the training sessions. The leaflet will be made widely available on both councils' websites and there will be ready access to the information. Nobody will be on his or her own when seeking support and advice on what to do.

Much evidence from throughout the developed world shows bullying can have a devastating effect on our children and young people. The publication of the anti-bullying procedures and the training sessions being provided for parents are important steps towards putting an end to it.

One of the unspoken core groups of victims of bullying are the passive, stand-by witnesses. There is now emerging evidence to suggest that, like the good Samaritan, the person who observed but did not intervene, the person who saw and felt but could not articulate a response, is a victim too. Their needs and their concerns have to be addressed.

To summarise, the action plan made clear that preventing and tackling bullying requires support from parents and wider society and is not a problem schools can solve alone, which is a point we have to understand. The new anti-bullying procedures are not the whole answer to this complex problem, nor are they intended to be. The procedures include a strong emphasis on prevention of bullying behaviour through the fostering and development of a positive school culture and a climate that is based on inclusivity and respect. The procedures apply to all 4,000 primary and post-primary schools. They give a great opportunity to reinvigorate and strengthen our approach to preventing and tackling bullying in schools. I am delighted to have the opportunity to present this to the House.

Top
Share