Anti-Bullying Policy 2019

A copy of this policy is to be found on the Staff Intranet under ‘Policies and Procedures’

Policy Title Anti-Bullying Policy 2019

The Board of Governors, staff and students of Sale Grammar School are
totally opposed to bullying. Bullying is wrong and damages young people.
Purpose
This document outlines the commitment of Sale Grammar School to
provide a safe and secure working environment.

Author Mr Stephen Crane

Document History This document replaces the 2011 Anti-Bullying policy.

Date Policy May 2019

Introduced/ Amended
Anti-Bullying Policy

Contents

1. Rationale ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 2
1.1 Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 2
1.2 Aims ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 2
1.3 Definition ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 2
1.4 Types of Bullying …………………………………………………………………………………………………… 2
1.5 Cyberbullying ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 3

2. Sharing Bullying Concerns …………………………………………………………………………………………… 4

2.1 Context …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 4
2.2 Roles and Responsibilities …………………………………………………………………………………….. 4

3. Investigating a Bullying Incident …………………………………………………………………………………. 5

3.1 Dealing with the Incident ………………………………………………………………………………………. 5
3.2 Further information for dealing with Cyberbullying ………………………………………………. 6
3.3 Recording the Incident ………………………………………………………………………………………….. 6

4. Resolving Bullying ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 7

5. Preventing Bullying ………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 7

5.1 Anti-Bullying promotion in school …………………………………………………………………………… 7
5.2 Staff support and training ……………………………………………………………………………………….. 8
5.3 Assessment, Monitoring, Evaluation and Reviewing ……………………………………………….. 8

6. Further Support …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 8

7. Links to other Policies ……………………………………………………………………………………………………. 9

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1. Rationale

1.1 Introduction
At Sale Grammar School our inclusive ethos aims to support all students, including those who are
vulnerable or disadvantaged, to have the best possible start in life. We promote sensible, responsible
and respectful behaviour at all times, whilst celebrating success.

Bullying has a negative effect on all those involved: the target, the perpetrator and the bystanders. We
want all students to be healthy; stay safe; enjoy life; achieve their full potential; be interested and fully
involved in the community they live in and achieve economic independence. In particular, students
should expect to:

• be able to grow and develop in safety and free from prejudice and discrimination
• be listened to and have their views taken into account
• be treated with respect
• belong to and be valued in their community
• see their needs and interests at the heart of everything we all do.

1.2 Aims
The aim of this policy is to help us deal with incidents of bullying, quickly, effectively, consistently and
with sensitivity to the needs of the individual. Specifically this means:-

• To provide a safe and secure environment where all members of the school community are
treated with dignity and respect.
• To be proactive in reducing the risk of bullying by developing a school ethos in which bullying
is unacceptable and students are confident to report bullying.
• To apply consistent and appropriate education to any students who are involved in bullying
others and apply sanctions as required.
• To ensure that all members of staff take all forms of bullying seriously and intervene to
prevent incidents from taking place or continuing.

1.3 Definition
“Bullying is the repeated negative behaviour that is intended to make others feel upset, uncomfortable
or unsafe.” Diana Award Definition of Bullying 2019

1.4 Types of Bullying

Bullying behaviour which conforms to the above definition can take different forms:

• Verbal - the repeated negative use of speech, sign language or verbal gestures to intentionally
harm (hurt) others e.g. swearing, offensive language, discriminatory language.
• Indirect – repeated negative actions, which are neither verbal nor physical, to intentionally
hurt others e.g. isolating someone from a group, damaging/taking somebody’s property,
physical intimidation.
• Physical – repeated negative use of body contact to intentionally hurt others e.g. punching,
kicking, spitting at someone.
• Cyberbullying - the use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending
messages of an intimidating or threatening nature e.g. misuse of social networks. (See section
1.5)

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Bullying of anyone with Disabilities
Bullying involving children and young people with disabilities employs many of the same forms as other
types of bullying.

Racist and Religious Bullying

Racist bullying can be defined as ‘A range of hurtful behaviour, both physical and psychological, that
makes a person feel unwelcome, marginalised, excluded, powerless or worthless because of their
colour, ethnicity, culture, faith community, national origin or national status’.

Sexual and Sexist Bullying

Sexual bullying includes any behaviour, whether physical or non-physical, where sexuality is used as a
weapon by boys or by girls. It can be carried out to a person’s face, behind their back or by use of
technology. Inappropriate touching can also be a form of bullying and harassment, and may escalate
into abuse. Sexist bullying refers to bullying simply because the victim is a girl or a boy, based on
singling out something specifically gender-linked.

LGBT Bullying
This is the bullying of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) young people or those perceived
as LGBT. Bullying towards LGBT young people may target their non-conformity to gender norms. This
can be classed as sexual harassment. It can be particularly difficult for a young person to report, and
is often directed at them at a very sensitive phase of their lives when identity is being developed.

While young people may express an acceptance of sexual, sexist, homophobic or transphobic insults
because they are widely used, such insults are often used to bully someone. Such insults, therefore,
should never be ignored and under no circumstances passed off as ‘banter’. This can be deemed
harassment if it is at the expense of someone’s dignity and meant offensively e.g. the term ‘gay’ as an
insult is unacceptable and should always be challenged. Similarly, ‘jokes’ about sexual assault, or rape,
if unchallenged, can create an atmosphere in which this behaviour is seen as more acceptable.

1.5 Cyberbullying
All bullying can be disturbing, but cyberbullying is particularly damaging. Not only is there often the
threat of anonymity, but the bullying does not stop at the school gate as it might have done in the
past. Cyberbullying on the internet endures and is repetitive by virtue of the fact that any further
viewing and commentary will increase the abuse. Also, owing to its remoteness, the perpetrator will
not necessarily see the subsequent, ongoing effect on the victim and may deem the comment as ‘just
a bit of fun’.

Cyberbullying can include any of the following;

• Denigration - sharing information about another person that is false or damaging. Sharing
photos of someone for people to make fun of, spreading fake rumours and gossip.
• Flaming - the use of extreme and offensive language/ insults. The aim of flaming is to cause
reactions and people often get enjoyment of the victim’s distress.
• Catfishing – creating fake profiles on social network sites, apps and online.
• Outing – coaxing someone into revealing secrets and forwarding it to others – usually involving
screenshotting.

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 • Cyber stalking – repeated messages that include threats of harm, harassment, intimidation or
engaging in other online activities that make a person afraid for his or her safety.
• Exclusion – this is when others intentionally leave someone out of a group e.g. group
messages, online apps, gaming sites. This is also a form of indirect bullying.
• Online Sexual Harassment – Sending unwanted images (youth produced sexual imagery) or
messages of a sexual context. This could include trying to persuade someone into returning
images of themselves and/or doing something they are not comfortable with.

Whilst some cyberbullying is clearly deliberate and aggressive, it must be recognised that some
incidents of cyberbullying may be unintentional and the result of simply not thinking about the
consequences.

Students may need reminding that under the Malicious Communications Act 1988, it is an offence for
a person to send an electronic communication which conveys a message which is indecent or grossly
offensive, a threat, or information which is false and known or believed to be false by the sender.
Parents and students should also be aware of the school Acceptable Use of ICT agreement to
understand the school rules regarding appropriate use of ICT. Any case of cyberbullying should be
reported to the school who will investigate based on the criteria set out in Section 3 of this policy.

2. Sharing Bullying Concerns

2.1 Context
Bullying can take place in a variety of contexts including lessons, travel to and from school, during the
school day (including break and lunchtimes), after school during extra-curricular activities and on
social media where it has an impact on students in school.

2.2 Roles and Responsibilities

Students
Students are expected to promote a positive attitude within school and the community. They have a
duty to support others in tackling bullying. They are expected to:
• Behave positively and avoid discrimination against others.
• Report incidents which may be related to bullying to any of the following people;
- Student Anti-Bullying Ambassador
- Pastoral Mentor
- Form Tutor
- Head of Progress and Learning (HOPL)
- Senior Leadership Team
- Pastoral Support Assistant
- School Counsellor
- School Nurse
• Report incidents which may be related to bullying electronically through either of the
following systems;
- The Confide system. A confide option is located on the screen of all school computers.
- The School website. Completing an Anti-Bullying Disclosure form on the Student Support
section of the school website.
• Help change the mindset of others to ensure mutual respect.

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 • Follow up restorative conversations with full engagement.
• Be receptive to different perspectives when an incident occurs.

Parents
Parents are expected to support the school policy on tackling bullying including supporting all parties
to find a positive resolution. They are expected to:
• Report incidents of bullying to the Form Tutor or Head of Progress and Learning.
• Remain impartial and report factual evidence.
• Allow appropriate time for investigations to take place.
• Re-assure any victims that a resolution will be found
• Support the restorative approach to educating the bully.

Staff
Staff are expected to promote a safe and secure environment for all users of the school.
• Staff will remain vigilant to incidents of bullying around school, reporting all such incidents.
• Staff will challenge language used in class and around the school that is discriminatory in any
way.
• Form Tutors will actively promote anti-bullying strategies.
• Heads of Progress and Learning will act on incidents of bullying and resolve as appropriate.
• Staff dealing with bullying incidents should inform parents at the earliest possible stage.
• All staff will support an educational and restorative approach to bullying.
• Repeat offenders will be sanctioned in line with the school Behaviour Policy.

3. Investigating a Bullying Incident

3.1 Dealing with the incident – The 5 As

When a student, member of staff or parent reports an incident of one or more students being bullied,
any action taken will be overseen by the Head of Progress and Learning with the assistance of the
Senior Leadership Team, where necessary. Staff investigating an incident may wish to use the ‘5 As’ to
guide their investigation.

Assess
After a reported incident the staff member should ensure the victim is safeguarded from any further
events. This could involve communication with Student Services to share the student’s location
and/or in the case of physical bullying potentially any First Aid support.

Assure
The staff member should reassure the victim that they have made the right decision to come forward
and disclose the incident. Staff may also need to reassure other students who are linked to the
incident.

Ascertain
Students who are victims should be interviewed by the staff member, Form Tutor, or Head of Progress
and Learning. Questions should include;

- What has happened?

- How often has it happened?

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 - Who was involved?
- Where it happened?
- Who saw what happened?
- What has he or she done about it already?
• Any witnesses must provide a written statement that is signed and dated.
• The use of images or screenshots may be used as supporting evidence.
• The alleged ‘bully’ should be interviewed by the Head of Progress and Learning where possible.
• Parents should be contacted and informed
• At this stage it must be determined if bullying has occurred and if there are wider reasons for
this. Staff should refer to the bullying definition in this document for clarification.
• After all evidence has been taken into consideration, the staff member involved should decide
on further action. Staff should always consider the age and stage of development of the
students involved.

Amend (Refer to Section 4 ‘Resolving Bullying’ for further details)

In most cases it would best to provide educational support for the bully to modify their behaviour.
Where possible we would like the victim and bully to work together on the outcome and potential
sanction required. This can take place during break or lunch times and would most likely include some
restorative approaches including an apology to the victim.

Applaud
It is vital that a staff member who has dealt with a bullying incident reviews the progress made by both
the victim and bully. This should initially take place, as a minimum, on a weekly basis. Where positive
progress has been made, the staff member should acknowledge this e.g. phone call home to parents.

3.2 Further information for dealing with cyberbullying

The victim should keep examples of texts, emails or screenshots received to aid an investigation. To
contain the spread of cyberbullying consideration must be given to;

• Confiscating and/or deleting content from phones

• Contacting the service provider or host (e.g. the social networking site)
• Contacting the police (in relation to illegal content)

Members of the school community will be advised on steps they can take to avoid recurrence. This
will include;

• Not to retaliate or reply

• Being provided with appropriate contact details of service providers
• An awareness of changing contact details, blocking contacts, or leaving a chatroom.

3.3 Recording the incident

• All information will initially be kept by the Head of Progress and Learning.
• Incidents of bullying will be recorded on the School Information Management System with
full details.
• Any racial bullying should be recorded specifically as a racist incident. If bullying continues,
the picture will be evident through the School Information Management System and dealt
with in line with the school Behaviour Policy.

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4. Resolving Bullying

There is often a reason for someone to begin bullying, often due to their own past experiences or
current emotional circumstances. Education for the bully is fundamental in our approach as a school.
Where possible we will look to avoid lengthy sanctions which increase the resentment towards the
victim, making a positive resolution difficult to maintain. All parties involved must consider the impact
of their actions including the needs of others, especially in the case of an imbalance in power over
disadvantaged students.

Potential strategies
• Staff-led discussion with the bully and the victim with empathetic outcome and apology
• Peer mediation for low-level bullying, using Anti-Bullying Ambassadors to find a resolution,
with guidance from Head of Progress and Learning as required
• Support and guidance from Anti-Bullying Ambassadors
• Teacher or Tutor discussion with bully
• Involvement of the bully’s parents with Head of Progress and Learning support

Persistent bullying or serious incidents may be dealt with in line with the school’s Behaviour Policy
The may include detentions or isolation during free time or lesson time. In the most serious cases fixed
term or permanent exclusion may be used if the bullying involves serious actual or threatened violence
against another pupil and/or amounts to persistent and defiant misbehaviour.

5. Preventing Bullying

5.1 Anti-Bullying promotion in school

Bullying can be prevented by removing opportunity but also by educating students and creating an
ethos where it is unacceptable to bully. Prevention can be through:

• Support through Anti-Bullying Ambassadors by raising awareness of what bullying is.

• Anti-Bullying Ambassadors having a key responsibility in the requirement to be alert to bullying
and the need to take appropriate action to support the victim and to inform a member of staff.
• Seeking opportunities in all curriculum areas to promote co-operative behaviour. Friendship
skills, conflict resolution, tackling prejudice and negotiating are all elements that can be
addressed.
• The school will raise awareness each year during Anti-Bullying week through assemblies,
poster campaigns and other events as organised by Anti-Bullying Ambassadors.
• Educating students through Skills for Life lessons.
• A focus in Year 7 during transition activities.
• Raising awareness through Anti-Bullying posters in form rooms.
• Central noticeboards display extra advice on where students can seek help, including details of
confidential help lines and web sites connecting to external specialists, such as Childline.
• Advice and support is also published on the Student section of the school website.

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 • Support services such as the School Counsellor and School Nurse are an important part of our
pastoral support service, providing specialist skills of assessment and counselling. They are
available to give confidential advice and counselling support to students. Students can refer
themselves to the School Nurse and through a member of the pastoral team to the School
Counsellor.
• The school Rainbow Club offers support to all students and especially for those who identify
as LGBT.
• Teachers will challenge language used in class and around the school that is discriminatory in
any way.
• The Computing and Skills for Life curriculum will include issues relating to cyberbullying and
online safety.

5.2 Staff support and training

The policy and procedures will be periodically reviewed and if necessary updated in order to ensure
effectiveness. Staff training will be given to support the policy. Teachers should consult those with
specific skills in dealing with bullying problems – Head of Progress and Learning and Senior Leadership
Team.

5.3 Assessment, monitoring, evaluation and reviewing

The conduct of student behaviour will be reviewed through discussion with the Student Voice Group
on occasions. Any feedback from staff, parents or students will be forwarded to Assistant Headteacher
Pastoral for consideration. The Student Voice Group will support the review and implementation of
this policy along with the Anti-Bullying Ambassadors. The recording of behaviour through the School
Information Management System will provide information on the effectiveness of this policy.

6. Further support

Outside agencies who can offer general support are:

Childline: 0800 1111

NSPCC: 0800 800 5000

Samaritans: 08457 90 90 90

Anti-Bullying Specific Support

Anti-Bullying Alliance www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk

Advice and help for parents and children

Anti-Bullying from the Diana Award www.antibullyingpro.com

Support Anti-Bullying ambassador training

Kidscape
2 Grosvenor Gardens, London, SW1W ODH. Tel: 0207 730 3300 Fax: 0207 730 7081
Has a wide range of publications for young people, parents and teachers. Bullying counsellor available
Monday to Friday, 10-4.

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Stand up to Bullying
www.standuptobullying.co.uk
Advice for parents and children about dealing with bullying.

Bullying UK
www.bullying.co.uk Telephone: 0808 800 2222
Advice and help for parents and children

Cyberbullying Support

ChildNet International: www.childnet.com Specialist resources for young people to raise awareness
of online safety and how to protect themselves. Website specifically includes new cyberbullying
guidance and a practical PSHE toolkit for schools.

Digizen: www.digizen.org provides online safety information for educators, parents, carers and young
people. Internet Matters: provides help to keep children safe in the digital world.

Think U Know: www.thinkuknow.co.uk resources provided by Child Exploitation and Online Protection
(CEOP) for children and young people, parents, carers and teachers.

7. Links to other related policies

School
• Behaviour, Rewards and Consequences Policy
• Child Protection and Safeguarding policy
• E safety Policy (including ICT Acceptable Use Agreement - students)

External
• Preventing and Tackling Bullying DFE 2017
• Cyberbullying Advice for Headteachers and Teachers DFE 2014
• Sexting in schools and colleges: responding to incidents and safeguarding young people
UKCCIS 2016
• Working together to safeguard children DFE 2018
• Equality Act DFE 2010
• Malicious Communications Act 1988
• The Diana Award Anti-Bullying Guidance for Staff 2018

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