Beyond Bullying

Understanding Bullying

Church Langton CE (Aided) Primary School is committed to providing a caring, friendly and safe environment for its pupils, so they can learn and play in a secure environment. The school treats all reported incidents of bullying-type-behaviour and bullying seriously.

Church Langton CE (Aided) Primary School is committed to being a ‘telling school’: all pupils and adults should be able to tell someone they trust and know that incidents will be dealt with promptly and effectively. Anyone who knows that bullying is happening is also expected to tell someone they trust. Our pupils are encourage to be a power for good to make our school a safe and welcoming place.

Our school currently hold Leicestershire Count Council’s Beyond Bullying Award and we are currently in the process of renewing our commitment to this framework. This work involves the school council reviewing our pupil version of our anti-bullying policy and parent forum helping to review the whole school anti-bullying policy. This work is led by Mr Roddy and supported by our beyond bullying governor Mr Day.

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Definition of Bullying

Bullying is repeated behaviour by an individual or group that deliberately hurts another individual or group physically or emotionally.

 

Types of bullying

Bullying-type-behaviour, which can lead to bullying if it is repeated, includes:

Emotional (being unfriendly, name calling, making offensive comments, teasing, spreading hurtful rumours, inappropriate sarcasm, excluding, mocking, taunting, tormenting, using threatening gestures);

Physical (pushing, kicking, hitting, punching, spitting or any use of violence; plus taking other physical-bullying-actions such as tacking, hiding or damaging belongings);

Racist (racial taunts, gestures);

Sexual (unwanted physical contact or sexually abusive comments);

Homophobic (focusing on the issue of sexuality);

Other prejudice-based bullying (e.g. religious beliefs, physical appearance, disability, perceived intelligence, perceived economic status);

Cyber (sending abusive or nasty e-mails; sending computer viruses; sending inappropriate images or videos by e-mail; using instant messaging and chat rooms to send threatening or abusive messages to someone else and asking others to join in; using another person’s account, without their permission, to send abusive messages to others; writing nasty or upsetting comments on someone’s profile on social networking sites; making jokes or comments about people on their own profiles; writing comments underneath other people’s bullying posts; setting up a fake profile dedicated to bullying someone else; abusing or harassing someone through online multi-player gaming sites; sending abusive texts, video or photo messages, or sharing videos of physical attacks on individuals (for example ‘happy slapping’ or ‘blue jacking’); ‘sexting’, which is encouraging someone to share intimate pictures or videos of themselves and then sending these on to other people; posting photos, personal information, fake comments and blogs, or pretending to be someone online without that person’s permission).

 

For Children

 

Are you being bullied?

At Church Langton we use STOP to support all children when bullying occurs.

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What to do:

Remember: Church Langton CE (Aided) Primary School is a ‘Telling School’. Speak out. You have the right to live without being tormented.

If you are being bullied through texts or phone calls, save messages and call records if you have space in your phone. If not, write down the time of the call/text, what was said/written and the caller/sender’s number if you have it. And don’t reply to any texts – it’s just what the bully wants.

Who should I tell?

Adults who you can trust. This might be a parent or grandparent, teacher, lunchtime supervisor or learning support assistant.

Sometimes just having things out in the open can be enough to make bullies stop.

Remember: Church Langton CE (Aided) Primary School is a ‘Telling School’. The school has a Behaviour & Bullying Policy which makes it clear that bullying is not tolerated and what staff members will do to deal with any cases of bullying or bulling-type-behaviour.

The most obvious adult in school to tell is your class teacher. However, if, for whatever reason, you don’t feel comfortable telling your class teacher, think about who else you can tell:

  • is there a teaching assistant that you would rather tell?
  • is there a teacher who you had in the past that you would rather tell?
  • would you prefer to speak directly to Mr Roddy or Mrs Edwards?

Every member of staff takes bullying seriously and will listen to you.

Of course you can/should also tell your family.

If you are really struggling to tell an adult, ask a close friend who you trust to help you speak to an adult.

 

For Parents and Carers

How can I tell if my child is being bullied?

Your child may not tell you that he or she is being bullied. However, you may notice some changes in his or her behaviour, including he/she:

  • doesn’t want to go to school;
  • is unwilling to go to school (school phobic);
  • changes their usual routine;
  • is alone all the time (or a lot more than previously);
  • doesn’t want to talk to anyone;
  • is frightened to say what’s wrong;
  • becomes aggressive, disruptive or unreasonable;
  • begins to demonstrate bullying-type behaviour towards siblings, other children, pets or others;
  • lacks appetite or even stops eating;
  • is afraid to use the Internet or mobile phone;
  • is nervous and jumpy when a cyber message is received;
  • gives improbable excuses for any of the above.

These signs and behaviours could indicate other problems, but bullying should be considered a possibility and should be investigated.

 

What should I do if my child is being bullied?

If you suspect your child is being bullied, don’t ignore it.

Find a quiet time to talk to your child. Explain that bullying is unacceptable and that no one should have to put up with it. Promise to do all you can to stop it.

Make an appointment to see your child’s class teacher as soon as possible.

Useful tips for the meeting:

  • decide what you want to say and what you’d like to achieve from the meeting before you go;
  • try to stay calm even though you may feel angry and emotional;
  • don’t blame the teacher – he or she may be unaware of the bullying if no one has reported it;
  • give specific examples of how your child is being bullied;
  • discuss what action the teacher will take;
  • arrange to meet again within two weeks to discuss progress.

If you are unhappy with how the situation progresses, you can arrange to speak to a member of the Senior Leadership Team (Mr Roddy, Mrs Edwards, Mrs Harrison or Mr Baylis).

 

What should I do if my child is demonstrating bullying type behaviours?

If you suspect your child is bullying another child or other children, don’t ignore it.

A child who is bullying others often has problems of his/her own. Try to understand what may be causing this behaviour and think about what is going on in your own home. Bullying can be subtle, so watch your child’s behaviour closely.

Consider the following:

  • Is your child going through a difficult time?
  • Does your child feel overlooked or overshadowed?
  • Could your child be copying someone else’s behaviour – maybe an adult or older sibling at home or a character from a TV programme or computer game?
  • Do other members of your family use aggression or force to get what they want?
  • Are you allowing your child to use aggression or force to get what they want from other people?

Make sure your child understands that bullying is unacceptable. Encourage your child to be friendly, understanding and kind to others. Try to bolster friendships by inviting other children over to your home, but watch out for any signs of bullying.

Arrange to speak to your child’s class teacher and/or a member of the Senior Leadership Team (Mr Roddy, Mrs Edwards, Mrs Harrison or Mr Baylis). We will happily support you and your child to resolve this situation.

 

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