Wooler First School
Bullying Policy

It is the responsibility of the whole school community to eradicate bullying by ensuring the development of a caring and supportive ethos.
As bullying can irrevocably damage the mental health of an individual, bullying will not be tolerated in Wooler First School.
Racist incidents are regarded as forms of bullying. The school will record all racist incidents, including the date, the name or perpetrators and the victims, the nature of the incidents and the action taken to deal with them. The school will inform the Police of any racist incidents that are categorised as crimes.

Pupils
It is the responsibility of the whole school community to:

• promote self-discipline and proper regard for authority among pupils.
• encourage good behaviour and respect for others to ensure as far as is reasonably practicable the prevention of all forms of bullying among pupils.
• ensure pupils’ standard of behaviour is acceptable.
• regulate pupils’ conduct.

Staff
Professional relationships between members of staff are best conducted with respect and in a non-threatening manner. (See Complaints Policy)

Identifying the Problem
Teaching and non-teaching staff shall always be on the look out for specific behaviour patterns which may indicate that a pupil is unable to inform staff about the fact that he/she is being bullied. Such observation regarding specific behaviour patterns shall be routinely established within the school.
Signs of bullying might include
- unwillingness to come to school
- withdrawn, isolated behaviour
- complaining about missing possessions
- being easily distressed
- damaged or incomplete work

Staff will be able to use their knowledge of the pupils to identify changes in their behaviour that might indicate bullying.
When bullying is confirmed thorough investigation shall be undertaken, Rigorous vigilance will be maintained to ensure that the bullying is stopped.

Prevention
Bullying at Wooler First School will not be tolerated. All incidents will be taken very seriously.
When a disclosure of bullying is made, it shall be treated seriously.
Investigations into bullying incidents shall be thorough and involve both the bully and the bullied.
If a child reports an incident of bullying to his/her teacher then the teacher will conduct an investigation and try to resolve the problem.
If the teacher feels that the incident warrants more investigation then she will inform the headteacher/deputy headteacher.
The headteacher/deputy headteacher will conduct a thorough investigation.
If the allegations are found to be true then the parents of the bully will be informed as well as the parents of the bullied. The head or deputy head will be responsible for reporting to the parents.

Every effort shall be made to identify why a pupil has bullied. The bully shall be helped to recognise his/her unsociable behaviour and offered support to modify that behaviour

This policy may include the anti-bullying policy and should be publicised annually to pupils, staff and parents. It should be regularly reviewed. It is good practice to indicate in the school prospectus the main tenets of the policy, which should be given to the parents on admission of their child to school.

Headteachers have a legal duty to take measures to prevent all forms of bullying.

Headteacher Chair of Governor