Anti-bullying
At Weaverham Forest Primary School our inclusive ethos aims to support all pupils to become equipped to lead both happy and successful lives. Our values of Respect, Kindness and Truthfulness are at the heart of all that we seek to achieve and our school virtues underpin all that we do. Therefore, bullying has no place at Weaverham Forest Primary School. Bullying has a negative effect on all those involved: the target, the perpetrator and the bystanders. We want all pupils to be healthy; stay safe; enjoy life; achieve their full potential; be interested
and fully involved in the community they live in. In particular, pupils 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 our school community and beyond
- See their needs and interests at the heart of everything we all do.
At Weaverham Forest Primary School, bullying includes cyberbullying, prejudice-based bullying and discriminatory bullying. It must be noted that Weaverham Forest Primary School has a separate policy for Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment which covers peer-on-peer abuse. This is also covered in the school’s Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy.
Definition
“Bullying is the repeated negative behaviour that is intended to make others feel upset, uncomfortable or unsafe.” Diana Award Definition of Bullying 2019
The repetitive, intentional hurting of one person or group by another person or group, where the relationship involves an imbalance of power. Bullying can be physical, verbal or psychological. It can happen face-to-face or online’. ANTI-BULLYING ALLIANCE
Victim - A person or group that is harmed by the behaviour of others and who does not have the resources, status, skill, ability to counteract or stop the harmful behaviour.
Parents/Carers
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 class teacher.
- 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.
We advise that parents/carers also support their child in other ways, for example:
- Take an active interest in your child’s social life. Discuss friendships, journey to and from school, and monitor electronic communications.
- If you think your child is being bullied, encourage her/him to talk about the problem calmly and inform school immediately.
- Keep a written record of cyberbullying, take screenshots, including examples of texts or emails received if bullying persists, providing supportive evidence regarding WHO, WHAT, WHERE and WHEN.
- Seek support from staff in the school to help support your child. Do not encourage your children to hit back or to reply to bullying emails or text messages. It only makes matters worse. Impress upon them the need to inform an adult immediately if bullying occurs.
- If your child is found to have been bullying others, please ensure that you co-operate fully within the school, in order that the situation can be resolved as quickly as possible.
Useful Links
Please use this link to navigate to our policy page for all relevant policies.