Anti-Bullying Policy ANTI BULLYING POLICY Hastingsbury Business & Enterprise College Anti-Bullying Policy outlines what Hastingsbury B&E College will do to prevent and tackle bullying. The policy has been drawn up through the involvement of the whole college community, with all stakeholders coming to an agreed shared vision about what an effective anti-bullying policy looks like. Statement of Intent We are committed to providing a caring, friendly and safe environment for all of our students so they can learn in a relaxed and secure atmosphere, thus being able to achieve their full potential. Bullying of any kind is unacceptable at our college. If bullying does occur, all students should be able to tell and know that incidents will be dealt with promptly and effectively. We are a TELLING college. This means that anyone who knows that bullying is happening is expected to report this to any member of staff. Objectives of this Policy As a college we take bullying seriously. Pupils and parents should be assured that they will be supported when bullying is reported. Bullying will not be tolerated. All governors, teaching and non-teaching staff, pupils and parents should have an understanding of what bullying is. All governors, teaching and non-teaching staff should know what the college policy is on bullying, and follow it when bullying is reported. All pupils and parents should know what the college policy is on bullying, and what they should do if bullying arises. Everyone has the right to attend college without being hindered by the behaviour of others. All forms of bullying are unacceptable and will not be tolerated. We will treat all incidents of bullying seriously and always endeavour to resolve them and prevent them recurring. Staff will reinforce the College expectations of students and will take action if any form of bullying behaviour is seen. What is bullying? It is deliberate behaviour, designed to upset, by a person who feels they have some sort of power over their victim. Bullying can be emotional, physical, verbal and done through the medium of technology (Cyberbullying). It can include: name calling; taunting, mocking, making offensive comments; kicking; hitting; taking belongings; inappropriate text and electronic messaging through social network sites; sending offensive or degrading images; producing offensive graffiti; gossiping; excluding people from groups and spreading hurtful and untruthful rumours. Bullying can happen to anyone. Bullying can take place in all relationships: between students and staff; students and students; or between staff.. This policy covers all types of bullying, including: Bullying related to race, religion or culture. Bullying related to special educational needs. Bullying related to appearance or health conditions. Bullying related to sexual health orientation. Bullying of young carers or looked after children or otherwise related to home circumstances. Sexist or sexual bullying- unwanted physical contact or sexually abusive comments. Cyberbullying.
Preventing, identifying and responding to bullying We will: work with staff and outside agencies to identify all forms of prejudice-driven bullying. Actively provide systematic opportunities to develop pupils social and emotional skills, including their resilience. Consider all opportunities for addressing bullying including through the curriculum, through displays, through peer support, and through the College Councils. Train all staff, including lunchtime staff, to identify bullying and follow college policy and procedures on bullying. Actively create safe spaces for vulnerable children and young people. Regularly canvas student s views on the extent and nature of bullying. Ensure students know how to express worries and anxieties about bullying. Ensure all students are aware of the sanctions which may be applied against those engaged in bullying behaviours. Involve students in anti-bullying campaigns in college. Publicise the details of helplines and websites. Offer support to students who have been bullied. Work with students who have been bullying in order to address the problems they have. Ensure that parents / carers know whom to contact if they are worried about bullying. Ensue parents know about our complaints procedure and how to use it effectively Ensure parents / carers know where to access issues beyond the college site that gives rise to bullying. Expectations of Students We expect high standards of behaviour to be maintained so that all students can work to their full potential. The high standards we have established are based on respect for the rights of the college as a community, and of groups and individuals within that community. Our Expectations of Students are broken if someone is bullied. ADVICE TO STUDENTS DON T SUFFER IN SILENCE If you are being bullied get away from the situation as quickly as possible; tell an adult what has happened straight away. If you have been bullied tell a member of staff or another adult in the college. Tell your family. If you are scared to tell a member of staff or an adult on your own, ask a friend to go with you; don t blame yourself for what has happened.
ALL BULLYING INCIDENTS SHOULD BE REPORTED When you re telling an adult about being bullied, be clear about what has happened to you, how often it has happened, who was involved, who saw what was happening, where it happened, what you have done about it already, anything that has been done about it already. YOU WILL BE LISTENED TO AND TAKEN SERIOUSLY HOW TO AVOID BEING BULLIED There are some things that you can do to help ensure that you are not bullied. These include the following courses of action: Get a friend to stay with you. Avoid being alone with the person who frightens you. Ask a member of staff whether they mind you changing where you sit in class and explain why. Make sure your property is always put in a safe place. Try not to rise to the bait. Do not retaliate. Report it. Do not provoke others. Tell someone about your concerns. This should preferably be an adult, but if you feel you cannot do this, ask a friend to tell an adult for you. All students should also make sure that if they see another student being bullied they tell a member of staff immediately. ADVICE TO PARENTS Watch out for signs that your child is being bullied, or is bullying others. Parents are often the first to detect that a problem exists. Symptoms of bullying. The following are typical signs or behavioural patterns which may indicate that someone is being bullied (NB. They may also indicate other kinds of distress, even abuse). These include: is frightened of walking to or from college doesn't want to go on the college / public bus begs to be driven to college changes their usual routine is unwilling to go to college (college phobic) begins to truant becomes withdrawn anxious, or lacking in confidence starts stammering attempts or threatens suicide or runs away cries themselves to sleep at night or has nightmares feels ill in the morning begins to do poorly in college work comes home with clothes torn or books damaged
has possessions which are damaged or " go missing" asks for money or starts stealing money (to pay bully) has dinner or other monies continually "lost" has unexplained cuts or bruises comes home starving (money / lunch has been stolen) becomes aggressive, disruptive or unreasonable is bullying other children or siblings stops eating is frightened to say what's wrong gives improbable excuses for any of the above is afraid to use the internet or mobile phone is nervous & jumpy when a cyber message is received These signs and behaviours could indicate other problems, but bullying should be considered a possibility and should be investigated Encourage your child to discuss events at college every day, eg. friendships, breaktime and lunchtime activities, travelling to and from college, etc. In this way you will pick up any early warning signs of unhappiness. Do not encourage your child to retaliate as this will make matters worse. Show them how to resolve difficult situations without using violence or aggression. If you feel something is wrong then ask your child to write down what is happening, and then contact your child s Tutor immediately or member of the Student Support Team. It is vitally important that you contact the school immediately you have any concerns. Is your child bullying others? Children sometimes bully because: they don t know it is wrong, they are copying older brothers and sisters or other family members whom they admire, their friends encourage them to bully, they are going through a difficult time and are acting out aggressive feelings. You can help prevent bullying behaviour by; discouraging members of your family from using aggression or force to get what they want, giving your child lots of encouragement and praise when they are co-operative or kind to other people, regularly checking with your child how things are going at school. If you feel that your child is bullying others then please contact the college for advice. We are here to help. GUIDELINES FOR ALL STAFF Who are the victims? Any student can be bullied. There are certain risk factors which will make the experience of bullying more likely. These include: lacking close friends in college, being shy, nervous or anxious, possibly coming from an over-protective family environment, being new to the class or college,
being different in appearance, speech or background from other students, having special needs, being seen to be clever, demonstrating entertaining reactions when bullied. Some students are vulnerable all of the time, others temporarily due to a particular circumstance. It is far too easy to blame the victim and tell them to toughen up. Students such as this need help to become more assertive, more resilient and strategies to enable them to deal with difficult situations. What staff should do. If staff observe an incident that they feel is bullying, or if a student reports an incident: do not ignore the situation; action should be taken quickly; the victim should be asked to write down what has happened in as much detail as possible; listen to the victim. Make sure you find out clearly what has happened, who is involved, the pattern and timescale of the bullying and the feelings of the student involved. You also need to decide how seriously you feel the incident should be treated; reassure the victim; offer immediate advice to the victim. (see Student section above entitled How to avoid being bullied ); the bully should be asked to write down their version of events; tell the bully you disapprove of their behaviour; hold a restorative meeting between the victim and the bully - encourage the bully to see the victim s point of view. It may be helpful here to remind the bully that excuses such as we were only messing about are not acceptable. At this stage the member of staff needs to decide whether the conversation they have had is sufficient to end the matter, or whether some kind of consequence is appropriate for the bully. Inform parents of what action has been or is being taken. Input the incident to SIMS and inform the relevant Head of House for information only or for further action. Student accounts will be copied for all students involved on their behaviour log. Where bullying behaviour is persistent towards an individual or group of individuals, then this will result in normal disciplinary action to be taken up to and including the consideration of permanent exclusion of the student(s) concerned.
Follow-up action. The Victim It is important that when a referral for action is made that this happens swiftly. Inform parents that action is being taken. The student should be counselled carefully in a space where you will not be disturbed. If you are not dealing with the bully you need to be aware of the action that is going to be taken in relation to the bully before you have this meeting. The main aim of this meeting is to ensure the safety of the victim. Agree strategies to be taken - by the student and the college. The Bully If you are dealing with the victim it may be the case that you are the not most appropriate person to deal with the bully. This decision should be made in consultation with the Tutor, Head of House or another member of the Student Support Team. If a consequence is required this should be in line with the existing practices of the college. The bully should be interviewed about their behaviour. This should be non-confrontational but should establish the premise that there is a problem, it has been witnessed by others, that the victim is unhappy about their behaviour and that this type of behaviour is bullying. The student needs to confirm that it is their behaviour that is causing the victim some distress at this point in time and that, therefore, they have to change their behaviour towards the victim. This agreement should be put in writing and signed by the bully. The most common outcome from this situation will be a Restorative Justice meeting between the bully and the victim, led by a member of the Student Support team. Where bullying behaviour is persistent towards an individual or group of individuals, then this will result in normal disciplinary action to be taken up to and including the consideration of permanent exclusion of the student(s) concerned. Lunchtime Supervision At lunchtimes, staff in a supervisory situation will often only be able to observe non-verbal interaction between students. Any students who are engaged in any physical behaviour, even if they are messing about will be spoken to by the members of staff on duty. Often what can look like bullying can simply be play fighting where both parties are agreeing to take part in such behaviour and students involved do not have an issue with this. Students in play fights often; are smiling or laughing, make mock blows or kicks which do not connect, or only do so softly, may take turns in being in control of the situation, do so in the open, but are ignored by other students. In all such circumstances, all staff are expected to address this inappropriate behaviour to ensure no-one ends up hurt as a result.
Knowledge of the students can help supervisors be more vigilant. There is a need to watch for students who seem isolated, whilst recognising that some students are quite happy to be by themselves. When to intervene Any students involved in play fighting or other inappropriate physical behaviours should be challenged by all members of staff, reminding students that this kind of behaviour is not appropriate for the work place. Students who are being attacked or physically bullied: often frown or look unhappy or angry, try to move away from the aggressor, do not take turns, the aggressor maintaining the dominant role, if in view of other students, will get considerable attention. All incidents of bullying should be acted upon immediately. Lunchtime supervisors should: deal with minor incidents themselves (see Guidelines for Staff above); if more concerned, contact the Senior Supervisor on duty by sending a student to find them. The Senior Supervisor should then follow the procedures outlined in the General Guidelines for Staff. PREVENTION Peer group disapproval is one of the strongest disincentives for any anti-social behaviour. The tutorial programme within registration, assemblies, Personal Development lessons and Enterprise Activities deal with issues of bullying. One of the aims of the programme is to help engender understanding and care and to encourage all students to reject any kind of bullying behaviour, whether directed at themselves or at others. The tutorial programme also attempts to increase students assertiveness skills in order to decrease incidents of bullying. This includes aspects of SEAL work (Social, Emotional Aspects of Learning) being delivered to students. Students who require some intensive help developing their self assertiveness skills will be identified by the Student Support Team. A special voluntary group led by the Kempston Inclusion manager is developed with the specific brief of providing students with strategies which will ensure they are less likely to be victimised. Staff are all aware that it is important to arrive on time for break time duty as this is an important mechanism for ensuring that bullying does not take place. Attendance at lunchtime clubs and activities does a great deal to reduce incidents of bullying. LINKS WITH OTHER COLLEGE POLICIES AND PRACTICES This policy links with a number of other college policies, practices and action plans including: Behaviour For Learning Policy Complaints Policy Confidentiality Policy
The teaching of Personal Development Education (Citizenship, RE and PSHE) The recording of racial incidents Action plans taking forward the Every Child Matters agenda MONITORING, EVALUATION AND REVIEW We will review this policy at least once every two years as well as if incidents occur that suggest the need for review. The college uses the guidance by the DFE and the Anti-Bullying Alliance to inform its action planning to prevent and tackle bullying. Middle School records are used to help monitor students who have a history of bullying behaviour. The Student Support Team monitors the implementation of the anti bullying policy on a daily basis. A questionnaire is conducted every year in all year groups to ascertain the levels of bullying present in the college. The House Councils are asked to help review the policy on an annual basis. A question is also included within the annual parental survey. The Behaviour Management in SIMS will also monitor and record incidents of bullying throughout the year allowing for thorough analysis at any given point. This will allow us to identify trends and develop meaningful strategies to address incidents of bullying. An annual review is co-ordinated by the Head of Student Support Services in liaison with the whole college community where all stakeholders are consulted and participate in the review. RESPONSIBILITIES This policy will only work if it ensures the whole college community understands that bullying is not tolerated and understands the steps taken to both prevent and respond to bullying. It is the responsibility of the college Governors to take a lead role in monitoring and reviewing this policy. It is the responsibility of all members of staff who work in the college to be aware of and implement the policy accordingly. It is the responsibility of all students to abide by this policy. PROMOTION Hastingsbury Business and Enterprise College promotes its Anti-Bullying policy through inclusion on the College website, a synopsis in the Student Planner, in the College prospectus, and through our termly Highlights. We also take part in National Anti-Bullying week each year to promote and remind students and staff of this policy. USEFUL WEBSITES www.teachernet.gov.uk/wholeschool/beahviour/tacklingbullying/safeto learn www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk www.childline.org.uk