§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the level of bullying in schools in the Vale of York, with particular reference to those within the City of York. [176688]
§ Mr. Ivan LewisData on bullying are not collected centrally and there is no reliable basis for an estimate of prevalence. However, any level of bullying is too high and we are determined to help schools to tackle the problem. Our guidance pack 'Bullying: Don't Suffer in Silence' and the anti-bullying Charter and the anti-bullying website www.dfes.gov.uk/bullying offer detailed advice on preventing and addressing bullying. In November 2003 I launched our anti-bullying Charter for schools, which schools are now signing. It is accompanied by a summary of effective practice to help schools review and enhance their anti-bullying policies. The Charter was launched at the first of a series of regional conferences which have been running since November 2003 and culminate with a final conference in June. These conferences are an opportunity for schools and other partners to share good practice on this issue. Details of the conferences can be accessed online at www.teachernet.gov.uk/antibullying.
§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what measures he is taking to tackle bullying in schools; what guidance his Department has issued to teachers and schools about the prevention of bullying; and if he will publish his guidance. [176689]
460W
§ Mr. Ivan LewisBullying is a serious problem which puts the emotional well-being and educational achievement of pupils at risk. Schools should treat bullying seriously and take steps to combat it promptly and firmly whenever and wherever it occurs. From September 1999, head teachers of maintained schools have been under a duty to draw up measures to prevent all forms of bullying among pupils.
In December 2000 we launched a guidance pack for schools with an accompanying video aimed at pupils. The pack is entitled 'Bullying: don't suffer in silence'. In September 2002 an updated version of this document was issued.
There is also a new public information film, 'Tell Someone', to raise awareness and encourage children to tell someone if they are being bullied, and an anti-bullying website at www.dfes.gov.uk/bullying, which contains the text of the updated pack. The Department has also funded an expansion of the Parentline Plus free helpline for the parents of bullying victims (0808 800 2222). The key message of the strategy is that pupils should be able to report bullying to someone they trust and not suffer in silence.
We have launched an anti-bullying 'Charter for Action' which all schools are encouraged to sign and which offers a series of practical suggestions for tackling bullying. The anti-bullying Charter went into every maintained school in England on 19 January 2004. Like all the rest of our anti-bullying guidance, this is published and in the public domain. For further information on the Department's work to counter bullying in schools can be found on our website at www.dfes.gov.uk/bullying.
A further measure has been the 'Make The Difference' campaign, a series of anti-bullying conferences, one in each government office region. Eight have taken place, the last is on 14 June. These conferences allow head teachers in each region to share effective practise and benefit from leading national practice.
§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what representations he has received on the level of bullying in the Vale of York. [176690]
§ Mr. Ivan LewisWe are unable to provide a breakdown of representations on the level of bullying in the Vale of York. We receive representations from individual parents about incidents of bullying but we do not analyse these by LEA.
However, any level of bullying is too high and we are determined to help schools to tackle the problem. Our guidance pack 'Bullying: Don't Suffer in Silence' and the anti-bullying Charter and the anti-bullying website www.dfes.gov.uk/bullying offer detailed advice on preventing and addressing bullying. In November 2003 I launched our anti-bullying Charter for schools, which schools are now signing. It is accompanied by a summary of effective practice to help schools review and enhance their anti-bullying policies. The Charter was launched at the first or a series of regional conferences which have been running since November 2003 and culminate with a final conference in June. These conferences are an opportunity for schools and other 461W partners to share good practice on this issue. Details of the conferences can be accessed online at www.teachernet.gov.uk/antibullying.
§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much central funding was available to schools in the Vale of York in each of the past three years for programmes to combat bullying. [176691]
§ Mr. Ivan LewisThe Department does not disaggregate the money made available to schools for behaviour improvement. Within these budgets schools themselves make decisions on how much money to devote to anti-bullying work.