Manchester Mesivta

 

ANTI-BULLYING POLICY

(Prevention of Bullying and Harassment)

 Rational

To prevent bullying from undermining a safe and enjoyable learning environment. Bullying if left unchecked can cause serious long term damage to the victim’s health, educational attainment and outlook on life. Any form of bullying is wrong and is contrary to Torah values, and therefore contrary to our Hashkofa (religious outlook) as an Orthodox Jewish School. Bullying in any form, therefore, will not be tolerated. 

Aims

• To prevent bullying by creating a school where it is easy to report it confidently and safely.
• To challenge and correct bullying if it should occur.
• To educate boys as to the dangers of bullying. 

Definition

Manchester Mesivta defines bullying as being:

• Deliberately hurtful (including aggression),
• Repeated over a period of time,
• Difficult for victims to defend themselves against.

 

There are four main categories recognised:

• Physical          -  hitting, kicking, taking belongings.
• Verbal              -  name calling, insulting, making offensive remarks.
• Indirect            -  spreading nasty stories about someone,

-  exclusion from social groups,

-  intimidating looks or gestures being,

-  made the subject of malicious rumours.

• Cyber              -  sending malicious e-mails or text messages on mobile phones.

 

There are two types of bully:

• Occasional      - The occasional bully does not bully consistently, and often bullies in response to something that is happening to them at a particular time.
• Chronic           - The chronic bully is defined as someone who is not in control of their behaviour, and as someone likely to be consistently behaving badly towards others.

 

Boys who feel victimised should :-

•   Speak to their individual or form prefect

•   Approach their form-master

•   Speak to any teacher

•   Write a note to the Main School Co-ordinator or Principal and post in the red box outside the main office.

•   Give a note to the secretary

•   Leave a message for the PRINCIPAL

 

Procedures for dealing with bullying

There are eight key points to bear in mind when addressing all incidents of bullying:

1.    Never ignore suspected bullying. Record the incident, noting the time and the date.

2.    Listen carefully to all accounts – several pupils saying the same does not necessarily mean they are telling the truth.  Don’t make premature assumptions

3.    Adopt a problem solving approach with all pupils involved which helps to move the pupils forward and away from a cycle of blame.

4.    Follow-up repeatedly, checking bullying has not resumed

5.    All incidents of bullying, or suspected bullying, must be reported to the SLT as displayed on the wall display outside the office. (The Principal/Main School Coordinator  will determine the follow-up action required and notify staff involved.)

6.    A record of all incidents is kept allowing for analysis of any patterns of bullying to emerge. It will enable the school to create a preventative ethos.

7.    When any incident of bullying has been recorded, parents of the victim/s and the bully(s) will be contacted by their class tutors immediately to inform them of the incident and alert them to the fact that the school is aware of the problem and will be addressing it.

8.    Parents / carers will be kept informed throughout any investigation of bullying and notified of the outcomes.

 

If the incident is witnessed, the member of staff must deal with it immediately and record what has happened. All involved should be given the opportunity to discuss the incident and all present will be expected to listen politely and attentively. If appropriate, those involved may be spoken to separately.

If the incident is not witnessed, the member of staff to whom it is reported must sensitively investigate the possible bullying and determine if bullying has taken place. If the member of staff is certain that an incident of bullying has taken place it must be dealt with as though it had been witnessed. Where after investigation it transpires that there was no incident of bullying or their investigation was inconclusive, a record of the alleged incident must still be recorded and reported to a member of the SLT.

When dealing with incidents of bullying, the staff member must make an assessment of the incident (the staff member may wish to include a member of the SLT if they feel the bully(s) will respond negatively when challenged).The response may differ dependent on several factors e.g. whether the bulling is carried out by an individual or by a group, frequency and duration, the severity of the bullying etc.

Issues to consider when discussing consequences with pupils:

·         Has the bully picked on someone they have had no relationship with or is it on someone that there is an on-going relationship with, or was a past relationship with.

·         Is the bullying against an individual or are there other victims?

·         Is the behaviour “out of character” or is there a past record of bullying or related behaviours?

·         How is the bullying effecting the class / group? Is the bully seen as a negative influence and /or intimidating force by other pupils in the group?

·         Is the bullying against pupils or is there evidence that staff / adults are being bullied?

·         What is the nature and severity of the bullying?

• Where there is a group undertaking bullying are all equally involved? And therefore equal consequences?

 

It is important that the victim, if reporting the incident is praised and reassured that this was the correct thing to do.  Staff must explore solution based approaches with the pupils involved. The staff member dealing with an incident of bullying must follow through with what has been promised and communicate what has been done back to the victim.

 

Possible consequences and sanctions for bullies include:

• Pupil apology (verbal, written).
• Withdrawal of privileges.
• Internal exclusion.
• External fixed term exclusion.
• Permanent exclusion.

 

Appendix 1

The philosophy of the anti-bulling policy

The school recognises that the anti-bullying policy is an implicit element of an effective behaviour policy. Our Behaviour Policy is based on fair, explicit and consistent rules of conduct that encourage and reward appropriate behaviour. We believe that good behaviour is based upon respect and regard for and of personal and communal rights and all pupils are encouraged to take responsibility for their own behaviour. The promotion of good behaviour involves all staff, pupils, school and home and this approach enables school and home to engage in a positive partnership based on shared expectations. The continued reinforcement of the schools aims through the application of the policy provides consistency for the pupils and the chance to behave appropriately in all contexts.

We believe that in a caring school, respect for individuals and good relationships between all members of the school community are central to its well being. Bullying will not be condoned as it can cause serious long term damage to the victim’s health, educational attainment and outlook on life. At Manchester Mesivta we take bullying seriously. We believe it is everybody’s responsibility to deal with incidents of bullying in line with this policy, when they occur.

 

Throughout their education, every pupil has the right to:

Stay safe: being protected from harm & neglect and growing up able to look after themselves.

Enjoy and achieve: getting the most out of life and developing broad skills to adulthood.

These outcomes are implicit in the application of Manchester Mesivta’s  anti-bullying policy.

The aim is to work towards the prevention of bullying by creating a safe environment, which promotes trust, confidence, justice and fairness for all, by consistently:

• Recognising bullying;
• Dealing with bullying quickly and effectively when it occurs;
• Raising staff and pupil awareness about bullying;
• Adhering to the school agreed procedures for monitoring and recording of incidents of bullying;
• Involving parents actively in solutions and outcomes;
• Incorporating anti-bullying strategies into Individual Education Plans (IEP) and Annual Review targets;
• Providing strategies for dealing with bullying and intimidating situations;
• Creating an ethos where pupils are encouraged to talk about concerns;
• Actively implementing the school’s equal opportunities policy;

·         Identifying appropriate support programmes for pupils and their parents/carers.

 

Additional Support for Staff

Support for staff is available through:

• The Induction Programme
• INSET training

 

Appendix 2

Specific targeted types of bullying:

Racist Bullying

This is when a pupil is targeted for representing a group, and attacking the individual sends a message to that group.

Incidents can include:

• Verbal abuse by name calling, racist jokes and offensive language,
• Physical threats or attacks,
• Wearing provocative badges or insignia,
• Bringing racist leaflets, comics or magazines,
• Inciting others to behave in a racist way,
• Racist graffiti or other written insults.

 

Sexual Bullying

This affects both genders. Boys are also the victims of girls and other boys.

In general sexual bullying is characterised by:

• Abusive name calling,
• Looks and comments about appearance, attractiveness, emerging puberty,
• Inappropriate and uninvited touching,
• Sexual innuendoes and propositions,
• Pornographic material, graffiti with sexual content,
• In its most extreme form, sexual assault or rape.

 

Homophobic Bullying

Homophobic (including lesbian, bisexual and transgender) bullying can include:

• Rumour mongering,
• Social isolation,
• Text messaging,
• Frightening looks,
• In addition to more obvious forms of bullying such as name calling.

 

Special Educational Needs

Pupils with Special Educational Needs may not be able to articulate experiences as well as other children. However, they are often at greater risk of being bullied, both directly and indirectly, and usually about their specific difficulties or disability.

In the context of a school, many pupils at the school have been both perpetrators and the victims of bullying. They share many of the characteristics common in the bullying equation.

These include: low self-esteem; under-achievement; feelings of rejection and/or isolation; and a genuine sense of being different from the majority.

The feelings of power generated by the act of bullying are often an expression of inadequacy and insecurity.