Bullying

Worried about bullying at school, nursery or youth club?

Bullying worries children and parents and can be very destructive. If you have concerns as a parent, here are some things you can do:

• For a primary school or nursery, first speak to the class teacher about any concerns. Ask for a special watch to be kept for a time to see whether your child is not being left out of games or bullied in any way.
• For a secondary school, send a note to the head of year explaining your concerns. If these things do not work, ask your child to keep a diary of what happens and then write a letter to the headteacher, asking for an appointment.
• For a youth club contact the youth worker in the first instance.
• If you have already made a complaint, ask for a description of what has been done so far. You may like to ask for a copy of their policy on bullying.
• If you are still not satisfied, write to the Chair of Governors of the school or, for youth clubs write to the Manager of the Youth Service.
• If your child is upset and reluctant to attend school, you may wish to contact the Education Welfare Officers within our locality teams on 01432 260261, whose job is to ensure school attendance.

Try to stay calm, even when you are worried. It is better to give the school or youth club some time to try to put things right. A confrontation will not help your child. If you are told that your child is a bully, do not over-react. The school will need support from you to deal with the problem.

The People's Directorate of Herefordshire Council has produced a policy on preventing and tackling bullying and harassment in schools, youth clubs Children's Centres and so on. This includes a wide range information for professionals working with children and young people. The policy can be downloaded from the resources box to the right of the page.

In addition, there are a number of national organisations which give advice and support about bullying. The website details are in the external links box to the right of the page.