Bullying

(asked on 9th May 2019) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to tackle abuse directed at teachers from parents (a) online and (b) in person.


Answered by
Nick Gibb Portrait
Nick Gibb
This question was answered on 16th May 2019

The majority of schools and colleges provide safe and secure working environments for teaching staff.

All staff should be able to work in an environment in which pupils can develop, and staff can have fulfilling careers free from harassment and bullying. Schools and colleges have a duty and a responsibility to protect both pupils and staff. Any bullying of staff, including cyberbullying, is unacceptable and it is important that schools and colleges take measures to prevent and tackle this.

The Department provides specific guidance for headteachers and staff on how to protect themselves from cyberbullying and how to tackle it if it happens. The guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/preventing-and-tackling-bullying.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has recently announced that this guidance will be reviewed and updated.

The Department’s guidance “keeping children safe in education” also makes it clear that online safety training for staff should be integral to a school's safeguarding approach, and that appropriate filters and monitoring systems should be in place to help to safeguard the whole school community. This guidance is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/741314/Keeping_Children_Safe_in_Education__3_September_2018_14.09.18.pdf.

To prevent abusive behaviour in schools, the Department’s guidance on controlling access to premises also makes it clear that it is a criminal offence for a person who is on school premises without lawful authority to cause or permit a nuisance or disturbance. The guidance makes it clear that a school may consider that aggressive, abusive or insulting behaviour, or language from a parent presents a risk to staff or pupils. This guidance can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/controlling-access-to-school-premises.

The Department is currently developing new school and college security guidance which will be published later this year. This will include references to help deal with violent crime, and encourage the development of policies and culture to help reduce and address any violence-related incidents.

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