Taking tough action on bullying

Torbay Council is taking tough action in an effort to tackle bullying with a series of roadshows ahead of Anti-Bullying Week 2007 (19-23th November).

National Anti-Bullying Week sees no let-up in the fight against bullying in schools. Next week, as part of the preparations in the run up to the national week, Anti-Bullying Roadshows for pupils in Year 6 and 8 are being hosted by Torbay Council's Children's Services. Taking place over four days (Tuesday 6 - Friday 9 November) the roadshow will move to each of the four Cluster Team areas around the Bay (Torquay East, Torquay West, Paignton and Brixham).

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Cllr Anna Tolchard, Cabinet Member for Children's Services, said: “We are using this national initiative to raise awareness of the issue of bullying, and showcase some of the excellent work being done in local schools to tackle it.

“Through working closely with schools and other agencies, we can build on many of the positive steps being taken by schools across Torbay to address bullying, and highlight the excellent examples of where this work is really having an impact.

“This series of roadshow events illustrates the fact that everyone has a role to play in tackling bullying, and by working together we can ensure that every school adopts a practical, robust and effective anti-bullying policy."

Ali Matthews, Torbay Children's Services Assistant Director for Early Intervention, said: "We always take the issue of bullying very seriously and work hard to resolve the issue with the child, the family and the school.

"Often bullying can result in other kinds of behavioural problems such as poor attendance and low attainment, so we need to address these problems as soon as possible and get the victim back to school. We work closely in partnership with schools, which have come up with a whole range of innovative solutions to raise awareness of bullying, make sure it is reported and tackle the problem. Our service reaches out not only to the victims but also to the perpetrators, who have often been the victims themselves of bullying, to try to address the underlying cause of the behaviour."

Many schools are getting involved in the roadshow initiative including Paignton Community and Sports College, Torquay Community College, St Cuthbert Mayne, Eden Park Primary School, Curledge Street, Foxhole, Hayes, Homelands and Ellacombe.

The venues and dates for the roadshows are:

6 November – PC&SC (Waterleat Road) 8.45 – 10.15am Year 8 & 1.15 – 3pm Year 6.

7 November – TCC (Sports Hall) 9.30 – 11.30am Year 6 & 1.15 – 3pm – Year 8

8 November – SCM, 9 – 10.30am Year 6 & 11.30am – 1.15pm – Year 8

9 November – Eden Park Primary School, 10 – 11.30am & 1.30 – 3pm

More information and advice on bullying can be found on the Torbay Council website www.torbay.gov.uk/bullying, or on the anti-bullying alliance website www.ncb.org.uk/aba.