DRAFT POLICY FOR FEEDBACK

Murrumbeena Primary School continually promotes activities that support an inclusive, positive and respectful culture.

It is a place where students interact socially and learn ways to resolve problems. When students do behave inappropriately, it is beneficial for students, parents and staff to know what process will be followed.

Our ‘Wellbeing Team’ are currently reviewing our bullying policy and procedures and we’d love your feedback.

We will post the policy and procedures to you through the weekly newsletter in 3 separate sections.

Section one of the policy looks at:

The purpose of the policy
The scope
Definition of bullying (what it is and what it isn’t)
The different types of bullying
Examples of bullying
Definition of cyberbullying

Next week, we will ask for parent feedback on section 2 of the policy:

How does the school prevent bullying and encourage positive behaviours?

PLEASE READ SECTION ONE OF THE POLICY BELOW and provide us with your feedback through the quick survey on this link. The survey link will be open for feedback until 21st August.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/VSQJ5S6

BULLYING PREVENTION POLICY- section one

Purpose of policy

Murrumbeena Primary School is committed to providing a safe and respectful learning environment, where bullying will not be tolerated.

The purpose of this policy is to:

Explain the definition of bullying
Make clear that all forms of bullying at Murrumbeena Primary School will not be tolerated
Provide clear examples of signs of bullying, so that the school community can identify and report bullying behaviour to school staff
Ensure that all reported incidents of bullying are appropriately investigated and addressed
Ensure that support is provided to students who may be affected by bullying behaviour (including victims, bystanders and perpetrators)
Encourage parental and peer support in identifying, addressing and preventing bullying behaviours at Murrumbeena Primary School.

When responding to bullying behaviour, Murrumbeena Primary School aims to:

Be proportionate, consistent and responsive
Find a constructive, realistic and positive solution for all involved parties
Prevent the bullying from recurring
Restore the relationships between the students involved.

Scope

This policy applies to all school events and activities, including camps and excursions. This policy should be read in conjunction with our school’s Student Wellbeing and Engagement Policy, Duty of Care Policy and Statement of Values and School Philosophy.

What is bullying?

Definitions

Bullying occurs when someone, or a group of people, deliberately and repeatedly upset, harass, intimidate, threaten or hurt another person or damage their property, reputation or social acceptance. There is an imbalance of power in incidents of bullying, where the bully or bullies have more power than the victim due to their age, size, status or other reasons.

Bullying may be direct or indirect, physical or verbal, and includes cyberbullying. Bullying is not a one-off disagreement between two or more people or a situation of mutual dislike.

Bullying can be:

direct physical bullying – e.g. hitting, tripping, and pushing or damaging property.
direct verbal bullying – e.g. name calling, insults, homophobic or racist remarks, verbal abuse.
indirect bullying – e.g. spreading rumours, playing nasty jokes to embarrass and humiliate, mimicking, encouraging others to socially exclude a person and/or damaging a person’s social reputation or social acceptance.

Mutual conflict involves an argument or disagreement between people with no imbalance of power. In incidents of mutual conflict, generally, both parties are upset and usually both want a resolution to the issue. Unresolved mutual conflict can develop into bullying if one of the parties targets the other repeatedly in retaliation.

Social rejection or dislike is not bullying, unless it involves deliberate and repeated attempts to cause distress, exclude or create dislike by others.

Single-episode acts of harassment, nastiness or physical aggression are not the same as bullying. If someone is verbally abused or pushed on one occasion, they are not being bullied.

Harassment, nastiness or physical aggression that is directed towards many different people is not the same as bullying. However, single episodes of harassment, nastiness or physical aggression are not acceptable behaviours at our school.

Many distressing behaviours may not constitute bullying even though they are unpleasant. Students who are involved in, or who witness, any distressing behaviours of concern are encouraged to report their concerns to school staff.

What is cyber bullying?

Cyber bullying incorporates cyber bullying to torment, threaten, harass, humiliate, embarrass, target and cause hurt and distress, using digital technologies. Equipment, devices and programs within this document includes, but is not limited to, digital technologies such as computers, laptops, storage devices, projection devices, touch screens, video and audio players, the internet and other forms of social media, as well as the use of smartphones and other mobile devices.

Examples of cyberbullying include:

Sending comments, photographs or videos of a hateful or threatening nature
Using modern technologies to engage in the social exclusion of someone
Posting rude, explicit or embarrassing messages, photographs or videos on the internet
Stealing someone’s identity, including accessing their user accounts online
Engaging in cyber-stalking or invasion of your privacy online.

Chellee Plumb

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