Schools are being told to respond to online bullying “with the same level of seriousness” as in-person bullying.
The Scottish government’s anti-bullying guidance, Respect for All, says that face-to-face bullying remains more common than online incidents.
However, it warns that online bullying - including video footage and non-consensual image sharing - can be “as damaging as offline bullying and may have more serious consequences due to the digital footprint, lasting presence, group dynamics and potential for illegality”.
It also states: “Online bullying can happen anywhere at any time, making it more pervasive and harder to find respite from than other forms of bullying.”
The Health and Wellbeing Census Scotland 2021-22 found that 31 per cent of pupils in P5-S3 had been bullied in the past year. Of those who had been bullied in the past year, 82 per cent experienced bullying at school and 36 per cent experienced bullying online.
Published today, the government’s anti-bullying guidance - which had not been updated for seven years - follows a thematic inspection carried out by Education Scotland into the recording and monitoring of bullying incidents in school.
It found that in about a third of schools, leaders did not have a whole-school process for monitoring bullying incidents, “making it difficult to identify patterns and trends across the school, therefore limiting proactive interventions by staff”.
Better recording of bullying incidents deemed key
In a foreword to the guidance, the education secretary Jenny Gilruth says “all reports of bullying should be recorded”.
Ms Gilruth accepts this means that “the number of bullying incidents will likely increase”. However, she says that recording allows schools to assess the effectiveness of policy and practice, monitor recurring patterns or trends and, “most importantly”, ensure the necessary support is in place for pupils.
The guidance - which contains more information on prejudice-based bullying - sets out in detail the information that should be recorded, including the type of bullying, whether it is prejudice-based and details of any protected characteristics. It says that bullying incidents can be recorded and monitored by schools and councils using Seemis, the information system that manages student data in Scottish schools.
The definition of bullying has also been strengthened. The guidance reflects a renewed focus on the emotional, social and physical impact; it recognises that not all bullying is an intentional act and that it does not need to be repeated for it to have an impact.
However, the guidance also looks at the kind of behaviour that should not count as bullying.
It says “conflict is not the same as bullying” and that falling out and disagreeing is “a normal part of growing up”.
Focus on ‘prevention, response and inclusivity’
All local authorities, schools and organisations that work with children and young people will now be tasked with developing and implementing anti-bullying policies in line with Respect for All.
Ms Gilruth said it was focused “on prevention, response and inclusivity” and followed “a range of measures over the last year to improve behaviour and relationships in schools”.
In August, the Scottish government published its long-awaited plan for tackling worsening pupil behaviour in schools, along with guidance on the use of mobile phones.
Responding to the behaviour plan, the EIS teaching union said that while some aspects were “helpful”, schools needed “funding and resources”.
Today the EIS welcomed the anti-bullying guidance saying it would “ensure a consistency of approach” but again raised the issue of resourcing.
Andrea Bradley, the EIS general secretary, said additional resourcing would be required “to provide teachers and school staff with the time to record and report as outlined in the report”.
She also called on the government to deliver on its promise to recruit an additional 3,500 teachers saying this would be “the most important” step towards tackling bullying because it would allow implementation of “the early intervention and prevention strategies rightly advocated in the guidance”.
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