Anti-Bullying

Rudheath Senior Academy promote an environment which teaches students respect for others and where all members of the school are encouraged to contribute to a caring and effective atmosphere.

The school believes that all students, whatever their race, culture, gender, faith, sexual orientation, physical or intellectual abilities have the right to:

• A safe and secure environment at school and on the way to and from school
• Concentrate on their educational progress without fear of others

All students are encouraged to speak to a member of staff if they are being made to feel uncomfortable at school or if they witness this happening to others. Please make sure that you or your child lets us know if there is a problem that is making them unhappy.

What is Bullying?

Bullying is behaviour by an individual or group, repeated over time, that intentionally hurts another individual or group either physically or emotionally.

Bullying can take many forms such as name calling, taunting, mocking, making offensive comments, kicking, hitting, pushing, taking belongings, sending offensive or degrading images by phone or via the internet, producing offensive graffiti, gossiping, excluding people from groups and spreading hurtful and untruthful rumours.

Some incidents of bullying may also be a child protection issue. A bullying incident should be addressed as a child protection issue under the Children Act 1989 when there is ‘reasonable cause to suspect that a child is suffering, or is likely to suffer, significant harm. These concerns must be reported to the member of staff in school responsible for child protection and then reported to the local authority’s children’s social services.

Incidents could fall in the following categories and are repeated acts of behaviour –

• Any kind of behaviour that the victim is frightened to report.
• Physical contact, which is aggressive and hurtful and is given without provocation.
• Persistent name-calling.
• Physical assault and/or damaging someone else’s property.
• Persistent teasing.
• Persistent intimidation e.g. pushing and nudging.
• Persistent activity on social media with an intent to cause harm.

Pastoral Senior Leaders

There is a strong pastoral team who work closely with parents and carers to ensure all pupils are fully supported. The Assistant Head Teachers for Safeguarding, SEND and Behaviour are responsible for this important aspect of school life and work closely with the Heads of Year, Form Tutors and the School Nurse in all matters pastoral, as well as child-protection, safeguarding and e-safety.

“Young people have the power to change the world”

Diana, Princess of Wales

We have a group of students who have been trained as Anti-Bullying Ambassadors by The Diana Award. They are inspiring positive change in our school, whether it’s through the power of mentoring, standing up to bullying or by listening to young people who are afraid to speak to anyone else.

Our Ambassadors are not only a friendly face to talk to, they are our eyes and ears both in school and on social media.

They are also sharing their experience with our local primary schools, who, as a result have appointed their own Anti-bullying Ambassadors.

Reporting Incidents

If you wish to report an incident of bullying, contact your child’s Form Tutor. Should the issue require further support, your child’s Head of Year.

Alternatively, click  here to use The SHARP System (Student Help Advice Reporting Page System) which allows young people to report any incidents which occur within the school and local community anonymously and without fear. Click the logo below to access the dedicated Rudheath Senior Academy SHARP reporting page.

Counselling Directory

Counselling Directory is a confidential service that encourages those in distress to seek help. The directory contains information on many different types of distress, as well as articles, news, and events. To ensure the professionalism of our website, all counsellors have provided us with qualifications and insurance cover or proof of membership with a professional body.

www.counselling-directory.org.uk/bullying.html

Social Media

Bullying that happens on social media is just as harmful as other bullying — and sometimes it’s even worse. That’s because it’s hard to get away from and it can reach people no matter where they are or what they’re doing.

Getting bullied on social media or through text messaging can feel really terrible. Being connected to your phone, tablet, or computer all the time means that a bully can sneak into your life and make it feel like there’s no safe place to be. But there are things you can do to stop online bullying.

You can visit the Internet Matters website for more information regarding Cyber Bullying and how to stay safe online.