Anita Chopra, Partner at Match Solicitors raises awareness of the effects of bullying on children, encourages victims to challenge their ‘bullies’ and involves schools, sport clubs, and other youth providers in prevention activities in honour of Anti Bullying Week.
On any ordinary school day, there are countless number of children that are either absent from school because of bullying/cyber bulling or are being bullied in school. One of the main concerns in this area is the lack of current legislation which does not offer sufficient protection to victims from bullies, within schools. The current system, which requires parents of bullied children to follow the school’s internal complaint procedure, does not fully and effectively address the issue. More often than not bullying is covert and thus is not recognised until it is too late for the victim. Criminalising the offence could perhaps be a solution to tackling the offence. In addition, we need to ensure that all schools take the necessary steps to eradicate bullying and address parental complaints effectively, quickly and carefully. Headteachers must have a policy to prevent all forms of bullying among pupils and to take a hard line if this policy is breached.
If your child is being bullied:
- Talk to your child and ascertain the details
- Encourage your child to confide in a member of staff at school
- Speak to your child’s form tutor or head of year
- Make notes of incidents as and when they occur
- If unhappy with an outcome, make a formal written complaint to the school
- If the punishment to the bully is unfair, make your concerns known in writing
For any further help, contact us. Let us together make a stand against bullies!”