Artemis Anti-Bullying Policy
This policy is based on DfE guidance “Preventing and Tackling Bullying” July 2017 and supporting documents. It also takes into account the DfE statutory guidance “Keeping Children Safe in Education” (revised each August).
1) Policy objectives:
This policy outlines what Artemis will do to prevent and tackle bullying happening in or on Artemis premises, classes or Artemis events. The policy has been adopted with the involvement of the whole Artemis community.
If any member of our community is being bullied, during or away from their Artemis time, we gently encourage them to share with us so we can signpost towards help and support from counselling or legal services.
Artemis is committed to developing an anti-bullying culture where the bullying of adults, children or young people is not tolerated in any form.
2) Links to legislation
There are a number of pieces of legislation which set out measures and actions for schools / colleges in response to bullying, as well as criminal and civil law. These may include (but are not limited to):
● The Education and Inspection Act 2006, 2011
● The Equality Act 2010
● The Children Act 1989
● Protection from Harassment Act 1997
● The Malicious Communications Act 1988
● Public Order Act 1986
3) Responsibilities
It is the responsibility of:
● The SLT to communicate this policy to the school community including signposting to online policies, to ensure that disciplinary measures are applied fairly, consistently and reasonably, and that a member of the senior leadership team has been identified to take overall responsibility.
● SLT to take a lead role in monitoring and reviewing this policy.
● All staff, including: trustees, senior leadership, teaching and non-teaching staff, to support, uphold and implement this policy accordingly.
● Parents/carers to support their children and work in partnership with Artemis.
● Students to abide by the policy.
4) Definition of bullying
Bullying is “behaviour by an individual or a group, repeated over time that intentionally hurts another individual either physically or emotionally”. (DfE “Preventing and Tackling Bullying”, July 2017).
Bullying can be a form of peer on peer abuse and can be emotionally abusive; it can cause severe and adverse effects on children’s emotional development.
Bullying can include repeated incidents of: Physical contact, intimidating or threatening behaviour, taunting, spreading of malicious gossip or rumours and intentionally excluding or isolating others.
This includes the same unacceptable behaviours expressed online, sometimes called online or cyberbullying. This can include: sending offensive, upsetting and inappropriate messages by phone, text, instant messenger, through gaming, websites, social media sites and apps, and sending offensive or degrading photos or videos.
Artemis students have contributed their views on the victim and the bully:
The Victim:
● isolated
● no one to talk to
● feels like everything has been taken away from them
● low self-esteem
● negative
● takes away positive feelings
● becomes normal/routine
● unfair
● fear of being a ‘snitch’
● scared to talk
● loss of confidence and dignity
● self-conscious
The Bully:
● wants power
● wants to look big
● not happy in themselves
● victims themselves
● “the not-so innocent bystander” (a bystander who is supporting the bully)
● peer pressure – easily led
● may hate themselves
● expressing their feelings in a negative way / anger
● for fun
● might have emotional or additional issues.
● taking their insecurities out on others
5) Forms of bullying covered by this policy
Bullying can happen to anyone. This policy covers all types of bullying including:
● Bullying related to race, religion, nationality or culture
● Bullying related to SEND (Special Educational Needs or Disability)
● Bullying related to appearance or physical/mental health conditions
● Bullying related to sexual orientation (homophobic bullying)
● Bullying of young carers, children in care or otherwise related to home circumstances
● Sexist, sexual and transphobic bullying
● Bullying via technology, known as online or cyberbullying
6) Artemis ethos
Artemis recognises that bullying, especially if left unaddressed can have a devastating effect on individuals; it can create a barrier to learning and have serious consequences for mental wellbeing. By effectively preventing and tackling bullying, our school/ college can help to create safe, disciplined environment where students are able to learn, fulfil their potential and display integrity.
Our Community:
● Monitors and reviews our anti-bullying policy and practice on a regular basis.
● Supports staff to promote positive relationships, to help prevent bullying.
● Recognises that some members of our community may be more vulnerable to bullying and its impact than others; being aware of this will help us to develop effective strategies to prevent bullying from happening and provide appropriate support, if required.
● Will intervene by identifying and tackling bullying behaviour appropriately and promptly.
● Ensures our students are aware of what bullying is and that any concerns will be dealt with sensitively and effectively. Everyone should feel safe to learn and abide by the anti-bullying policy.
● Requires all members of the community to work with the school to uphold the anti-bullying policy.
● Reports back to parents/carers regarding concerns on bullying, dealing promptly with complaints.
● Seeks to learn from good anti-bullying practice elsewhere.
● Utilises support from the Local Authority and other relevant organisations when appropriate.
7) Responding to bullying
The process.
The following steps may be taken when dealing with all incidents of bullying reported to the school / college for events happening on or around Artemis activities:
● If bullying is suspected or reported, the incident will be addressed immediately by a member of staff.
● The school / college will provide appropriate support for the person being bullied – making sure they are not at risk of immediate harm and will involve them in any decision-making, as appropriate.
● A designated member of staff will interview all parties involved.
● The designated safeguarding lead will be informed of all bullying issues where there are safeguarding concerns involved.
● The school will inform other parents/ carers and relevant staff members, where appropriate.
● Sanctions and support for individuals may be implemented, in consultation with all parties concerned.
● If necessary, other agencies may be consulted or involved, such as: the police (if a criminal offence has been committed) or other local services including early help or children’s social care (if a child is felt to be at risk of significant harm).
● Where the bullying takes place off school site (including cyberbullying), the school will ensure that, where appropriate, the concern is investigated. Appropriate action will be taken, including providing advice to parents, as well as implementing sanctions in school in accordance with the school’s behaviour policy, where relevant.
● A clear and precise account of the incident will be recorded by Artemis in accordance with existing procedures. This will include recording appropriate details regarding decisions and action taken incur CPOMS system.
If the reported abuse took place outside of Artemis, for example at another school an Artemis learner attends, or a private function, we will not usually be able to intervene, but we will still make a record and offer whatever support we can. We should still be informed of outside incidents so we can monitor behaviour in class and if possible make reasonable adjustments to prevent escalation and further distress.
Cyberbullying
When responding to cyberbullying concerns, Artemis will:
Act as soon as an incident has been reported or identified.
Encourage the person being bullied to keep any evidence (screenshots) of the bullying activity to assist any investigation.
Take all available steps where possible to identify the person responsible. This may include:
Identifying and interviewing possible witnesses;
Contacting the service provider and the police, if necessary.
Support reports to a service provider to remove content if those involved are unable to be identified or if those involved refuse to or are unable to delete content.
Requesting the deletion of locally-held content and content posted online if they contravene school behavioural policies.
Inform the police if a criminal offence (such as harassment) has been committed.
Provide information to staff and students regarding steps they can take to protect themselves online. This may include:
Advising those targeted not to retaliate or reply;
Providing advice on blocking or removing people from contact lists;
Helping those involved to think carefully about what private information they may have in the public domain.
b) Supporting Students/Staff/Parents
People who have been bullied will be supported by:
● Offering an opportunity to discuss the experience with their teacher, the designated safeguarding lead, or another member of staff.
● Being advised to keep a record of the bullying as evidence and discuss how to respond to concerns and build resilience as appropriate.
● Working towards restoring self-esteem and confidence.
● Providing ongoing support; this may include: working and speaking with staff, offering referrals to formal third party counselling, engaging with parents and carers.
● Where necessary, working with the wider community and local/national organisations to provide further or specialist advice and guidance.
c) Practical Support for the victim
No-one should suffer in silence. Students are encouraged to seek support and this support needs to be easy to access.
1) Online by email. Please note this is not a round the clock option and emails are only seen during staff working hours. safeguarding@artemis-studios.co.uk
2) In person - please talk to your Mentor, Tutor, member of the Safeguarding Team, or any trusted adult.
3) Remember all teachers and staff will listen to you. If you would prefer to talk to another member of staff then just do that:
● A mentor can support students in a variety of ways and be the first point of contact for parents who may have concerns. If a student has any worries about bullying, their mentor will be able to offer advice and strategies. They will also actively attempt to resolve any issues, possibly by involving other key members of the pastoral teams. Furthermore, they can support referrals to other external and internal support.
● Pastoral Managers are the key to ensuring the pastoral care and safety of all students. They are welcoming and approachable. They will ensure students are listened to and the appropriate action taken.
● All staff members have a duty of care to students. If a student raises a concern regarding bullying, staff should immediately intervene to support the student(s) if the incident is happening at that time. A member of staff should seek support for the student from the range of internal and external support systems.
● All incidents of reported bullying are recorded on the CPOMs system. This allows Artemis to keep a log of all incidents and track action taken.
d) Out of school:
The following websites provide support for young people who are being bullied. They offer advice and strategies and also the chance to discuss your experiences:
Child line: http://www.childline.org.uk
Beat bullying: http://www.beatbullying.org
Bullying UK: http://www.bullying.co.uk
Kidscape: http://www.kidscape.org.uk
Young minds: http://www.youngminds.org.uk
Bullies out: http://www.bulliesout.com/
People who have been found to have perpetrated the bullying will be helped by:
Discussing what happened, establishing the concern and the need to change.
Informing parents/carers to help change the attitude and behaviour of the child.
Providing appropriate education and support regarding their behaviour or actions.
If online, requesting that content be removed and reporting accounts/content to service provider.
Sanctioning, in line with Artemis behaviour/discipline policy; this may include official warnings, detentions (college), removal of privileges and fixed-term or permanent exclusions.
Where necessary, working with the wider community and local/national organisations to provide further or specialist advice and guidance; this may include involvement from the Police or referrals to Early Help, Specialist Children’s Services, or Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) as appropriate.
e) Practical support for the Bully
There are many ways to deal with a bully. Below are some ways that we adopt in cases of bullying. These are determined on a case-by-case basis and could involve a combination of approaches:
1) Holistic Approach
Instead of reprimanding the bully and potentially escalating the problem, this concept centres on getting the bully and his/her peers to think about their actions and work on how to improve the situation. It is a problem solving-based technique. In some cases both ‘parties’ may be involved in the discussion.
2) Sanctions
A student involved bullying may be sanctioned in line with the school behaviour policy. Sanctions will escalate if behaviours are repeated.
3) Meeting with Parents/Writing Home
The issues are discussed with the parents of the bully asking for their parental support.
4) Restorative Justice
This approach allows the bully to assume active responsibility for their actions.
5) Involvement of the Senior Leadership Team
If the bullying is severe and prolonged or repeated over a period of time, the senior team will have to take action that may include excluding the student from classes or activities. In some cases this may be permanent.
e) Supporting adults
Artemis takes measures to prevent and tackle bullying among students; however, it is equally important to recognise that bullying of staff and parents, whether by students, parents or other staff members, is unacceptable.
Adults (staff and parents) who have been bullied or affected will be supported by:
● Offering an opportunity to discuss the concern with the designated safeguarding lead, a senior member of staff and/or the principal.
● Advising them to keep a record of the bullying as evidence and discuss how to respond to concerns and build resilience, as appropriate.
● Where the bullying takes place off school site or outside of Arteis activities, Artemis will take steps to ensure staff are aware and alert to any change in behaviour in the class room and take or make any reasonable adjustments to help.
● Reporting offensive or upsetting content and/or accounts to the service provider, where the bullying has occurred online.
● Reassuring and offering appropriate support.
● Working with the wider community and local/national organisations to provide further or specialist advice and guidance.
Adults (staff and parents) who have perpetrated the bullying will be helped by:
● Discussing what happened with a senior member of staff and/or the principal to establish the concern.
● Establishing whether a legitimate grievance or concern has been raised and signposting to the school’s official complaints procedures.
● If online, requesting that content be removed.
● Instigating disciplinary, civil or legal action as appropriate or required.
8) Preventing bullying
Environment
The whole community will:
● Create and support an inclusive environment which promotes a culture of mutual respect, consideration and care for others, which will be upheld by all.
● Recognise that bullying can be perpetrated or experienced by any member of the community, including adults and children (peer on peer abuse).
● Openly discuss differences between people that could motivate bullying, such as: religion, ethnicity, disability, gender, sexuality or appearance related difference. Also children with different family situations, such as looked after children or those with caring responsibilities.
● Challenge practice and language which does not uphold the values of tolerance, non- discrimination and respect towards others.
● Be encouraged to use technology, especially mobile phones and social media positively and responsibly.
● Work with staff, the wider community and outside agencies to prevent and tackle concerns including all forms of prejudice-driven bullying.
● Actively create “safe spaces” for vulnerable children and young people.
● Celebrate success and achievements to promote and build a positive school ethos
Policy and Support
The whole community will:
● Provide a range of approaches for students, staff and parents/carers to access support and report concerns.
● Regularly update and evaluate our practice to take into account the developments of technology and provide up-to-date advice and education to all members of the community regarding positive online behaviour.
● Take appropriate, proportionate and reasonable action, in line with existing Artemis policies, for any bullying bought to our attention, which involves or affects students.
● Implement appropriate disciplinary sanctions; the consequences of bullying will reflect the seriousness of the incident, so that others see that bullying is unacceptable.
● Use a variety of techniques to resolve the issues between those who bully, and those who have been bullied.
Education and Training
The school community will:
● Train all staff to identify all forms of bullying and take appropriate action, following the schools/ colleges policy and procedures (including recording and reporting incidents via CPOMs portal ).
● Consider a range of opportunities and approaches for addressing bullying throughout the curriculum and other activities, such as: through assemblies, peer support, the student council, etc.
● Provide systematic opportunities to develop students’ social and emotional skills, including building their resilience and self-esteem.
9) Involvement of Students
The school will:
● Involve students in policy writing and decision making to ensure that they understand the school/ college approach and are clear about the part they have to play to prevent bullying.
● Canvas children and young people’s views on the extent and nature of bullying.
● Ensure that students know how to express worries and anxieties about bullying.
● Publicise the details of internal support, as well as external helplines and websites.
● Offer support to students who have been bullied and to those who are bullying in order to address the problems they have.
10) Involvement and liaison with parents and carers
We will:
● Make sure that key information about bullying (including policies) is available to parents/carers in a variety of formats.
● Ensure all parents/carers know who to contact if they are worried about bullying and where to access independent advice.
● Work with all parents/carers and the local community to address issues beyond the school gates that give rise to bullying.
● Ensure that parents work with the Artemis to role model positive behaviour for students, both on and offline.
● Ensure all parents/carers know about our complaints procedure and how to use it effectively, to raise concerns in an appropriate manner.
11) Monitoring and review: putting policy into practice
Artemis will ensure that they regularly monitor and evaluate mechanisms to ensure that the policy is being consistently applied.
Any issues identified will be incorporated into the school’s /colleges action planning. The CEO and Head of Department will be informed of bullying concerns, as appropriate.
12) Useful links and supporting organisations
Anti-Bullying Alliance: www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk Childline: www.childline.org.uk
Family Lives: www.familylives.org.uk Kidscape: www.kidscape.org.uk MindEd: www.minded.org.uk NSPCC: www.nspcc.org.uk
The BIG Award: www.bullyinginterventiongroup.co.uk/index.php PSHE Association: www.pshe-association.org.uk
Restorative Justice Council: www.restorativejustice.org.uk The Diana Award: www.diana-award.org.uk
Victim Support: www.victimsupport.org.uk Young Minds: www.youngminds.org.uk Young Carers: www.youngcarers.net
The Restorative Justice Council: www.restorativejustice.org.uk/restorative-practice-schools
SEND
Changing Faces: www.changingfaces.org.uk Mencap: www.mencap.org.uk
Anti-Bullying Alliance Cyberbullying and children and young people with SEN and disabilities: www.cafamily.org.uk/media/750755/cyberbullying_and_send_-_module_final.pdf
DfE: SEND code of practice: www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25
Cyberbullying
Childnet International: www.childnet.com Digizen: www.digizen.org
Internet Watch Foundation: www.iwf.org.uk Think U Know: www.thinkuknow.co.uk
UK Safer Internet Centre: www.saferinternet.org.uk
The UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS) www.gov.uk/government/groups/uk-council-for- child-internet-safety-ukccis
Race, religion and nationality
Anne Frank Trust: www.annefrank.org.uk Kick it Out: www.kickitout.org
Report it: www.report-it.org.uk Stop Hate: www.stophateuk.org
Tell Mama:www.tellmamauk.org
Educate against Hate: www.educateagainsthate.com/ Show Racism the Red Card: www.srtrc.org/educational
LGBT
Barnardos LGBT Hub: www.barnardos.org.uk/what_we_do/our_work/lgbtq.htm Metro Charity: www.metrocentreonline.org
Sexual harrassment and sexual bullying
Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAW) www.endviolenceagainstwomen.org.uk
A Guide for Schools: www.endviolenceagainstwomen.org.uk/data/files/resources/71/EVAW- Coalition-Schools-Guide.pdf
Disrespect No Body: www.gov.uk/government/publications/disrespect-nobody-campaign-posters
Anti-bullying Alliance: advice for school staff and professionals about developing effective anti-bullying practice in relation to sexual bullying: www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk/tools- information/all-about-bullying/sexual-and-gender-related
Note: Additional links can be found in ‘Preventing and Tackling Bullying’ (July 2017) www.gov.uk/government/publications/preventing-and-tackling-bullying