The process of developing an anti-bullying policy

Local Authorities and individual organisations will have their own way of developing anti-bullying policies to reflect local environments and culture. To ensure consistency from Government level to an individual school or youth club, the principles, values and agreed national definition of bullying should be the same across all.

Anti-bullying policies should include:

• The agreed national definition of bullying as set out in Respect for All
• A statement which sets out the organisational stance on bullying and the scope of the policy
• A range of strategies and action statements to describe how inclusive environments will be created and nurtured. These environments will help in preventing and responding to bullying.
• A clear statement that bullying is a violation of children’s rights and contravenes the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, now enacted in Scots law
• A stated duty, where it applies, to challenge all types of prejudice-based bullying and language. This includes bullying related to the protected characteristics listed in the Equality Act 2010, as well as other forms of prejudice and discrimination related to characteristics that are not protected by the law, eg socio-economic or appearance-related bullying. Policies that address bullying based on the protected characteristics will require completion of an Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA)*.
• Expectations, roles and responsibilities of staff/volunteers, children and young people and parents/carers to support and uphold the policy aims
• A clear commitment to promoting and role modelling respectful behavior by adults in the school or setting
• The avoidance of using labelling language, ie ‘bullies’, ‘victims’, ‘perpetrators’
• The reporting, recording and monitoring strategies that will be used for management purposes in line with Data Protection guidelines, eg SEEMiS. The pervasive nature of bullying means that it can take place in a variety of locations and situations making it difficult for organisations to hold clear boundaries on where their responsibilities begin and end. It is not suggested that schools/organisationss should investigate all incidents that have taken place outwith their locus of responsibility, however there is a need to understand that the impacts of such incidents can affect learning, participation and wellbeing. This means that the young people involved may require to be supported, even if they don’t need to investigate and respond to the incident itself.
• Evidence that children and young people have been able to access their right to express their views in matters that affect them, and for these views to be given due weight in both policy development and implementation phases
• Evidence that parent/carer(s) have, in line with their rights, been included and consulted in the policy development process;
• How often the policy will be communicated, evaluated and reviewed with children and young people and their parent/carers(s) and staff/volunteers (it is suggested this takes place a minimum of every three years);
• A commitment to training and supporting staff and volunteers. 

Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment

Schools/organisations may also wish to complete the Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA). The CRWIA policy development and improvement approach has been made available for local authorities and children’s services to adapt for their own uses, if they wish.  Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment guidance - gov.scot