Anti Bullying Policy

Legal Status:

• Complies with Part 3, paragraph 10. Regulation 3 (2)(a) of the Education (Independent School Standards) (England) Regulations 2010
• Prepared with reference to DfE Safe to Learn – Embedding anti-bullying work in schools
• Having regard for the guidance set out in the DfE (Don’t Suffer in Silence booklet)

Applies to:

• Albion College

To be read with:

• ICT-Based Forms of Abuse (including Cyber-Bullying) Policy
• Anti-Bullying Procedures
• Anti-Bullying Parents and Pupils Information Sheets
• Anti-Bullying Code
• Worry Procedure
• Behaviour Management Policy including Sanctions, Rewards, and Exclusions
• Equality And Diversity including Equal Opportunities and Racial Harassment
• Safeguarding Policy And Procedures including Child Protection
• E-Safety Policy including ICT Acceptable Use
• PSHCE

• Available from:

• The college office

Monitoring and Review:

• To be continuously monitored and reviewed by no later than two years from the date shown below.

Signed: Date: July 14th 2011

Proprietor and Principal

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Anti-Bullying Policy

Introduction

We strongly believe that pupils have a right to study in a safe, supportive, and secure environment. Incidents of bullying threaten this and cause enormous stress to victims. We are therefore strongly committed to the avoidance of bullying in all its forms. We believe that the principle means of preventing it is through the maintenance of conditions where bullying is less likely to flourish and is more easily detected. As we are a relatively small college, all pupils are known to us personally and it is therefore easier for us to detect signs of possible distress. Moreover, we feel that it is important that pupils have free and informal access to management and administrative staff. However, a formal anti- bullying policy is of utmost importance.

Definition of bullying

Bullying is conduct intended to cause hurt either physically or psychologically, which is unprovoked and which may continue over a long period. Bullying is any behaviour which is intended to hurt someone in any way or to make someone feel uncomfortable or unhappy.

It may be further defined as the deliberate and repeated attempt to humiliate, threaten, frighten or hurt someone by means of verbal or physical abuse, and could also include racial, religious, cultural, sexual/sexist, homophobic, special educational needs, disability and cyber (social websites, mobile phones, text messages, photographs and email) bullying. A feature of bullying in colleges is that its existence is not always immediately known or suspected by those in authority. The College recognises the seriousness of bullying in causing psychological damage and even suicide. Although bullying is not a specific criminal offense, there are criminal laws which apply to harassment and threatening behaviour.

Aims and objectives of our anti-bullying policy

The College as a whole aims to teach the value of integrity, morality and a concern for others and to develop pupils’ self-confidence and independence so that they are well-equipped to play an active role in society. The Behaviour & Discipline Policy explicitly states that pupils should show courtesy, respect and consideration for others. All members of the college community, pupils or staff, should understand what constitutes bullying and be free from the fear of bullying. Everyone should feel able to speak out and report any concerns about bullying in the knowledge that they will be listened to and that the matter will be investigated. The College is fully committed to the proactive prevention of bullying and to providing counselling/help for victims of bullies and for bullies themselves. We ensure that bullies are dealt with swiftly and firmly. Bullying has not been and will not be tolerated at Albion College.

The aim of this policy is to try and prevent and deal with any behaviour deemed as bullying. The implementation of this policy creates an ethos where bullying is regarded as unacceptable so that a safe and secure environment is created for everyone in which to learn and work. All members of the College have a responsibility to recognise bullying when it occurs and take appropriate action in accordance with the college policy. We raise the awareness of staff through training and taking action to reduce the risk of bullying at times and places where it is most likely to occur.

Raising Awareness of Bullying (via staff training, action and educational programmes)

Newly appointed staff discuss the college’s anti-bullying policy as part of their induction and other staff training is provided as appropriate to reduce the risk of bullying at times and in places where it is most likely to occur. All staff, but in particular the Principal, remain vigilant in identifying places and occasions where any incidents might be most likely to occur.

We aim to create and maintain a caring, kind, non-violent and non-threatening atmosphere in the College by; inter alia regular staff training to raise staff awareness. We use educational elements such as personal, social and health education (PSHE) assemblies, English lessons, the involvement of guest speakers, projects, drama, literature, current events and also by ensuring that staff treat pupils with respect and empathy. We strive to prevent any form of bullying, to highlight the essential anti-bullying messages and maintain awareness of potential problems through education. Pupils are encouraged to share their concerns with the adults responsible for them. Staff consult with the Principal of Albion College knowing that their response will be sympathetic and appropriate.

Bullying can occur through several types of anti-social behaviour.

Bullying can be:

• Emotional (indirect bullying) including isolation of others by a refusal to co-operate with them and exclusion - being unfriendly, excluding, tormenting (e.g. hiding books, threatening gestures), deliberately excluding others from social groups or an activity by refusal to sit next to/ talk to/ work/ co-operate with others and refusal to follow staff instructions to do the above, or producing malicious rumours, e-mails or text messages, and also exclusion from play/discussions and so on with those whom they believe to be their friends.

  • • Physical harm or its threat including the abuse of personal property – jostling, serious fighting, pushing, kicking, hitting, taking or hiding belongings, punching or any use of violence; deliberately destroying or damaging work or possessions or removing personal property, use of weapons/threatened use of weapon (or any object that could be used as a weapon), intimidation through physical gestures and actions.

    • Cyber Bullying – not occurring face to face but rather through electronic means including, but not limited to, social networking sites, internet and intranet sites, email, instant messaging, by mobile phone including through text messages and phone calls, photographs both real and manipulated and so on. Please refer to the ICT-Based forms of abuse (including Cyber Bullying) Policy which is an integral part of the Anti-Bullying policy;

    • Racist - Bullying directs at individuals of a certain race, culture, ethnicity, language, faith, community, national origin or national status. The distinctive feature of racist bullying is that the victim is attacked not as an individual but as the representative of a family, community or ethnic group. This is an area where colleges are required to keep statistics about incidents.

    • Cultural – focusing on and/or playing off perceived cultural differences and so on.

    • Sexist – covers a wide range of behaviour from name calling to physical sexual assault. It is the use of sexual language or negative stereotyping on the basis of gender.

    • Sexual - is unwanted or inappropriate physical contact or sexual innuendo.

    • Homophobic - This is bullying which is directed towards people who are openly gay or bisexual, or are perceived as gay, or show characteristics perceived to be gay. Heterosexual young people subject to homophobic bullying are less reluctant to report it as this may enforce the stereotypical way that they are already viewed by others. Therefore sensitivity and positive support is required for victims.

    • Religious – attacking faith, belief, religious practice or customs

    • Disability – remarking upon, drawing attention to, or discriminating against persons with physical disabilities or learning difficulties;

    • Verbal - name-calling, sarcasm, spreading rumours, making snide comments, teasing, humiliating others, threatening others and inciting others to humiliate and threaten others;

    • Written – on paper.

The anti-bullying policy is dove-tailed with the college’s behaviour policy (with support for the victim and the bully) and makes it clear what the sanctions are for bullying. Strong sanctions such as exclusion may be necessary in cases of severe and persistent bullying. Handling of a bullying incident is given much thought to ensure that the facts are fully known, agreed and understood by the bully(/ies) and the victim(s). Instances of bullying are reported and recorded so that patterns can be identified.

Signs that a pupil is being bullied may include: reluctance to attend college, a pattern of minor illnesses, missing property, withdrawn behaviour, signs of distress, unexplained tearfulness, excuses for work not done, excuses for poor/unusual behaviour, exclusion/withdrawal from groups.

Appreciating the Seriousness of Bullying

Everybody has the right to be treated with respect. Pupils who bully need to learn different ways of behaving. The college has a responsibility to respond promptly and effectively to issues of bullying.

The Risks of Bullying to the Victims: Why is it Important to Respond to Bullying?

Bullying can lead to sadness, feeling anxious and insecure, feeling unhappy and lonely, low self-esteem, negative self-image, looking upon themselves as failures - feeling stupid and unattractive and feeling ashamed. College work may begin to suffer, and there may be a reluctance to attend college, a lack of trust in adult life, health problems - depression, sleeping difficulties, anxiety attacks and in the most serious cases - attempted suicide.

Bullying – the Pupil’s Response

Pupils mainly respond to bullying behaviour in one of four ways:

They can:

1. actively encourage the bullying behaviour;
2. passively support the bullying behaviour;
3. passively reject the bullying behaviour;
4. actively challenge the bullying behaviour.

At Albion College only (c) and (d) constitute valid options for response.

Bullying – the College’s Approach and Response

In keeping with the college’s Behaviour and Discipline Policy, Albion College is committed to a whole college approach in dealing with unacceptable behaviour such as bullying. Our response to this issue is positive. We recognise that it is the responsibility of the whole college community to work towards ensuring the development of a caring environment.

Approach – Preventing Bullying

The whole college approach is pro-active. Opportunities to create a supportive climate, raise awareness and promote an anti-bullying approach encompass a range of key elements in college living. Awareness helps the college community to understand the insidious problem of bullying and take action. Direct action is a reminder that bullying is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.

Strategies and Procedure for Dealing with Reported Bullying

The victim(s) should be made aware that their safety is considered to be of paramount importance. Parents are always informed if their child has been found to be either a victim or a perpetrator of a bullying incident. All instances of suspected bullying should be recorded in writing and passed to the Principal.

Incidents are carefully recorded. Victims, alleged bullies and witnesses should be interviewed separately by the teacher first involved, and are required to write down independent accounts of the incidents/situations. In the course of this procedure enquiries should be made to ascertain whether or not the alleged bully has been involved in similar incidents involving this or other pupils, thus enabling patterns of behaviour to be established. The teacher is always informed and discusses the incident with the Principal and in his absence the Director of Studies. Action should then be taken with regard to each of the following:

• Advice and support for the victim is in accordance with the college’s behaviour management policy.
• Sanctions imposed are related to the age of the pupil. The bully must understand what has been done and why the sanctions are being applied. Support for the bully is in accordance with the college’s Behaviour Management Policy.
• Informing the parent of the victim, the bully and possibly others involved.
• Formally recording the incident on the pupil(s) files.
• Giving general information to all staff, through daily staff briefing and staff meetings, of incidents of bullying; mentioning the type of incident and the individuals involved.
• Giving relevant feedback and reminders about appropriate behaviour to pupils.
• Strong sanctions such as exclusion may be necessary in extreme cases of severe and persistent bullying.

In the event of bullying taking place among the staff, the Principal will be informed and appropriate decisions made with possible reference to the Proprietor if necessary. Accusations of bullying of a pupil(s) by member/members of staff are also investigated thoroughly.

Each pupil is treated fairly and with respect. Members of staff to whom disclosures are made should initiate the following procedures themselves and/or consult with the relevant staff as appropriate. All disclosures, whether from a pupil, a parent or a member of staff, should be taken seriously and treated with sensitivity. The victim should be made aware that pupils’ safety is considered to be of paramount importance. Parents are always informed if their child has been found to be either a victim or a perpetrator of a bullying incident. All instances of suspected bullying should be recorded in writing and passed to the Principal.

Classroom Management

Teachers’ classroom management links strongly to the College Behaviour Policy. Class teachers control class behaviour. A positive ethos with emphasis on the dignity of each pupil, on praise and reward rather than punishment, is the norm in Albion College.

All pupils know that their teacher is the person to whom they can talk in confidence. Pupils are given the opportunity in class to discuss bullying and how to deal with it. They must know that they can and must ‘tell’. Pupils are encouraged to discuss how they get on with others and how to form positive attitudes towards them. This includes a review of what friendship really is and how to treat everyone with dignity and respect. Teachers are aware that they can radically affect the incidence of bullying and that it must always be taken seriously.

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