Definition:
Bullying is the repeated use of power over another person which exploits the weakness of the vulnerable while corrupting the user. It thrives on fear and undermines the community. Bullying isolates, controls and intimidates.
First Principles:
This School will not tolerate any kind of bullying. This could include:
- Repeated threatening behaviour: verbal or non-verbal
- Isolating a child from a group
- Name calling or constant teasing
- Unkind reference to a child and/or his/her family
- Racist jokes or remarks to a child or others
- Interfering with a child’s possessions
- Demanding payment of any kind
- Physical violence
- Encouraging others to commit acts of bullying
- Malicious online or text messaging (further details can be found on the published ‘Internet Usage Rules’ document)
- Watching incidents of bullying and failing to inform the appropriate person/people
Proactive Approach
The school ethos strongly encourages that all members of the community treat each other with due respect in all situations, at all times, regardless of age, race, gender, sexual orientation or physical ability. All members of the community are expected to uphold these values and to take appropriate action with anybody who fails to meet the expected norms.
These values are reinforced through more formal structures, events and procedures which include:
- Following a comprehensive PSHE curriculum which uses the published scheme JIGSAW at its core.
- Anti-Bullying Week once a year – age appropriate
- Revisiting the anti-bullying theme at the start of each term
- School Council
- School and Year Group Assemblies
However at times these procedures are not enough to prevent incidents of bullying from taking place and as such the School has a recognised structure for dealing with incidents which arise. It is important to note that every allegation of bullying is different from the next and, as such, professional judgement will be used in terms of flexibility of the following statements.
Identify the Problem:
Members of staff will take all allegations of bullying seriously and will investigate issues thoroughly when brought to their attention.
Parents concerned with bullying issues should, in the first instance, talk with the child’s class teacher/ form tutor.
A child concerned with issues relating to bullying can speak with any member of the school community, who will channel these concerns to the class teacher/form tutor. The class teacher/form tutor will monitor the situation and take the necessary action with both parties involved, using a range of strategies and their professional discretion.
Investigating the Issue:
The class teacher will raise any concerns about specific children in an open staff meeting to allow other members of staff to be aware of, and assist in, monitoring the situation.
Evidence will be gathered and recorded as it is observed. In the Junior School an ‘Incident Report’ will be filed. In all cases this will then be discussed with the Deputy Head and a decision taken as to when to inform parents. If instances of bullying are identified, and initial intervention has little or no effect, then the sanctions and procedures outlined in the British School of Amsterdam’s Behaviour Policy will come into effect.
During the investigation phase the needs of both the perceived bully and perceived target will be dealt with sensitively, providing time for reflection, discussion and, where necessary, rebuilding self-esteem.
Further steps that should be followed when dealing with incidents of bullying - please see below. |
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How Other Members of the Community will be involved in Anti-Bullying:Open lines of communication will be encouraged and maintained between home and school. Class teachers will regularly raise the profile of anti-bullying, for example through PHSE and assemblies. The Anti-Bullying Policy will be reviewed and distributed to the whole school community annually. The Principal of the school will be made aware of developments and may be involved with meeting parents. Parents will be made aware of continuing patterns in their child’s behaviour. Peers are an important part of the communication network. Within each school section, an age appropriate approach towards bullying will be taken to encourage support and reconciliation between all individuals involved. Bullying can occur to anybody at any time. Only a consistent and unified community approach, that reiterates the ethos and procedures laid down in this policy, can keep incidents to a minimum and avoid unnecessary suffering. |
Senior School Anti-Bully Policy
Aims
As stated in our philosophy and aims document, we are committed to providing a caring, supportive, friendly and safe environment for all of our pupils so that they can learn in a relaxed and secure atmosphere.
Bullying of any kind is always unacceptable and will not be tolerated at the British School of Amsterdam. It is our policy to foster an environment where everyone:
- understands the type of behaviour that could be interpreted as bullying
- realises the consequences of bullying for all concerned (the bully, any spectator, and followers, as well as the target of the bullying)
- considers strategies to avoid becoming the target of bullying
- develops the self-esteem to avoid becoming a bully, a spectator / follower or a target
Anyone who knows that bullying is happening is expected to inform any member of staff, a parent, or a friend; all pupils should feel able to report such incidents safe in the knowledge that they will be dealt with promptly and effectively.
OBJECTIVES |
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The objectives of this policy document are to ensure that all SB members, teaching and non-teaching staff, pupils and parents know:
As a school we take bullying seriously. Pupils and parents should be assured that they will be supported when bullying is reported. DefinitionsBullying:
It is important to respond to bullying because:
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Procedures 1
Promotion of an Anti-bullying Climate within the School
The School works to promote the positive qualities of altruism and community spirit. We try to demonstrate this through our general approach to others, both in and out of the classroom. We intend to show that everyone is challenging bullying behaviour. In this way we hope to encourage a climate where bullying is not tolerated and pupils feel confident in reporting any incidents that do occur. More specifically, we deal with relevant issues in the following ways.
The Role of the Headteacher and Pastoral Heads
The School takes seriously and investigates all reports of alleged bullying. It is the duty of everyone who is aware of an actual or potential instance of bullying to act to stop it.
It is the responsibility of the Headteacher and Pastoral Heads to implement the School anti-bullying policy and to ensure that all staff (both teaching and non-teaching) are aware of the school policy and know how to deal with incidents of bullying.
Read more |
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All teachers ensure that all children know that bullying is wrong, and that it is unacceptable behaviour in this school. The Headteacher and Pastoral Heads draw the attention of children to this fact at suitable moments. For example, if an incident occurs, the Headteacher or Pastoral Heads may decide to use assembly as a forum in which to raise with the school why this behaviour was wrong. The Headteacher and Pastoral Heads set the school climate of mutual support and praise for success, so making bullying less likely. When children feel they are important and belong to a friendly and welcoming school, bullying is far less likely to be part of their behaviour. The Role of the Teacher Teachers in our school take all forms of bullying seriously, and intervene to prevent incidents from taking place. They record all incidents that happen on 3sys and report them to the Pastoral Team (SS) who also keep information on all cases of bullying within their age phases on the pupils’ files within 3sys. If teachers/tutors witness an act of bullying, they do all they can to support the child who is being bullied. If a child is being bullied over a period of time, then, after consultation with the Pastoral Team, the child’s parents are informed. If, as teachers, we become aware of any bullying taking place, we deal with the issue immediately. This may involve counselling and support for the victim of the bullying, and punishment for the child who has carried out the bullying. We spend time talking to the child who has bullied; we explain why the action of the child was wrong, and we endeavour to help the child change their behaviour in future. If a child is repeatedly involved in bullying other children, we inform the Headteacher and Pastoral Heads. The child’s parents will then be invited into the school to discuss the situation. Teachers attempt to support all children and to establish a climate of trust and respect for all. By praising, rewarding and celebrating the success of all children, we aim to prevent incidents of bullying. The Role of Parents Parents who are concerned that their child might be being bullied, or who suspect that their child may be the perpetrator of bullying, should contact their child’s form teacher. The child should be encouraged to talk to his or her class teacher about any worries as well. Parents should watch for signs of distress in children, including reluctance to attend school, complaints about minor illnesses, complaints about missing possessions, and apparent isolation. If necessary help the class teacher in devising strategies that will provide support for your child both in and out of school. Parents have a responsibility to support the school’s anti-bullying policy and to actively encourage their child to be a positive member of the school. Preventative Action Issues relating to bullying will be dealt with thoroughly through the PSHE Programme. The topic will also be dealt with by class teachers who have regular contact with their classes, in full School Assemblies and in Key Stage Assemblies. All staff follow the guidelines which are set out in the Behaviour and Discipline Policy. In the Junior School, each classroom displays a child friendly ‘Anti-Bullying Code’ giving pupils procedures and advice to follow if they are being bullied or know of another pupil who is being bullied. In the Senior School relevant notices are on display around the School.
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| Activity | Responsible | Actions |
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PSHE Lessons | Pastoral Head. PSHE teacher | 1. See the PSHE programmes (KS3) |
Key Stage Business | Tutor; Head of Key Stage; Teachers; |
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Assemblies | Head of Key Stage; Headteacher |
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The School population is made aware of Bullying and of Anti-Bullying procedures throughout the year in the following ways:
- The attention of the academic staff is drawn to the Anti-Bullying Policy during the Staff (INSET) Days at the start of each academic year.
- New teaching staff are made aware of the Anti-Bullying Policy as part of the induction procedure.
- The Anti-Bullying Policy is published to parents on the School’s website.
- The Anti-Bullying Policy is published to staff on the website as well as on Firefly, the School’s VLE.
- Pastoral Heads discuss the school policy on bullying in their meeting with Tutors / Form Teachers at the start of the academic year and throughout the year as necessary.
In the above ways we hope to:
- raise awareness of bullying behaviour
- raise the profile of the School’s anti-bullying policy
- challenge attitudes about bullying behaviour
- increase understanding of how it feels to be bullied
- increase understanding of the dangers and serious consequences of bullying
- encourage the anti-bullying ethos of the School
After an incident has been investigated and dealt with, it is important that the situation is monitored to ensure that further bullying does not take place. Accurate records must be maintained for patterns of potential acts of bullying to be identified. This will allow us to take action to reduce risk at times and in places where acts of bullying are most likely to happen.
Procedures 2(a) Dealing With Cases of Bullying When They Arise (GENERAL)
Any member of the staff may be called upon to deal with a bullying incident because they have:
- witnessed it
- been taken into the confidence of a target, friend of the target, or eyewitness
- been contacted by a parent
This member of staff should:
- take bullying issues seriously so that the bullying behaviour (or threats of bullying) can be investigated and the bullying stopped as soon as possible
- report incidents immediately to the target’s Tutor copied to the Pastoral Head
- Incident opened in 3sys and details are recorded
The Pastoral staff will decide on the appropriate members of staff to interview the pupils concerned and to keep the rest of the team informed. This person will instigate the following procedure:
- interview the pupils concerned and record the incidents
- ask pupils to record, sign and date their version of events
- keep accurate records of cases of bullying
- help pupils concerned to reconcile their differences and be prepared to put previous incidents behind them
- help all pupils concerned to identify more appropriate ways of behaving in the future
- communicate information to colleagues
- help to restore the target’s self esteem, and encourage greater self confidence and assertiveness
- help the spectators / followers to learn how to behave more appropriately
- help the bully to learn how to behave more appropriately
- consider self-esteem issues concerning the bully
- in serious or persistent cases, inform parents and invite them to a meeting to discuss the problem
- consult external authorities (e.g. psychologists, police) if necessary and appropriate
It is the duty of everyone who is aware of an actual or potential instance of bullying to act to stop it.