Anti-Bullying Week

As anti-bullying week starts latest research shows one in twelve children are so badly bullied that it affects their education.

OFSTED highlights this problem saying many schools have appropriate policies but little evaluation or monitoring takes place.

Any person of any age can be bullied but it is in the classroom where bullying can cause the most damage. Children are less likely to be able to cope with the consequences of bullying than adults

Pupils have the right to be educated in an atmosphere free from fear. Schools have a duty to protect pupils in their charge from intimidation, assault or harassment. If they fail they can face legal actions in claims for damages for negligence and other tortuous remedies.

All schools in England and Wales are required to have a policy on bullying. It’s all well and good having an impressive policy. What is important is that the policy has a practical impact on the school. Unless the policy is understood by all, properly implemented, and regularly appraised to ensure it is working for the pupils, then it might as well not exist!

Any complaint of bullying should be taken seriously by a school. If a school knows about a potential incident of bullying, but does nothing about it and in fact allows the bullying to continue, this is likely to be regarded as being negligent.

The legal system rarely gets involved in dealing with school bullying. Less serious bullying can and should be dealt with by the school. If the school has a good policy on bullying, that they properly adhere to, they ought to be able to agree on reactive strategies with the parents which can be implemented quickly and nip the bullying problem in the bud. It is most important that bullying is resolved before any serious damage is done to the personal development or education of the pupil involved.

Taking legal action over incidents of bullying should be the last resort. Court proceedings are long winded, expensive and stressful. They will probably not be the answer and may well cause more harm than good. There will, of course, be extreme cases where such action is necessary, but these will be few and far between.

However, if you feel the school is not taking the situation seriously, a solicitor may be able to assist by negotiating with the school to come up with practical strategies for resolving the problem. 

Contact Simon Musannif for further information or advice.

Published 17/11/2008. The author of this article is Simon Musannif