My child is being bullied at school
If you suspect your child is being bullied you must act straight away. This guide on my child is being bullied at school is here to help you.
When talking with your child about it, remain calm and encouraging. Give lots of support and comfort and let the child tell you without you putting words out there.
If the issue is at school, regardless of what the child says, you must stand up for your child and you should not feel afraid of any repercussions from other parents or the school.
If bullying is left unresolved it will only get worse. The only way to tackle it is to meet it head-on. If your child is in a school where bullying is a known problem, get them out of there.
Teachers now have the authority to discipline children for bullying incidents that happen outside school
What are the signs?
- Overly quiet
- Tearful for no apparent reason
- Isolating themselves
- Not wanting to attend any school parties or events arranged by classmates
- Having problems concentrating or with homework
- Coming home with bruises, scratches, missing or damaged clothes
- Missing money
- Not spending much time texting or online (if older children) or being upset following being online or texting
What can I do?
- Speak to your child and sit with him and her and practice mindful breathing. This will calm the child and help them to relax and alleviate some of the anxiety that he or she may be feeling.
- If you feel your child needs counselling at any point, click here.
- Help them to keep a diary, no matter how hard it is for you to hear. The diary should be used as evidence for the school to act.
- If your child feels more comfortable with a particular teacher, then contact the school and ask to meet with that teacher.
- The school should have an anti-bullying policy, check their website, print it, read it and take it with you.
- When you meet with the teacher, ask them how they deal with bullying.
- Once the meeting has taken place, ensure that the teacher checks in with you once a week to give you a progress report on how things are progressing.
- If the school does not respond in a satisfactory manner, check their complaints procedure which should be on their website. Print it, read it and follow it.
- If you remain unhappy, report your school. For guidance, click here.