FE Colleges

Further Education Colleges help young people to gain new skills and build confidence and resilience. But a few learners can find they are targeted for bullying. If permitted to continue, these situations can send a message to the group that bullying is acceptable. Although the majority of learners in colleges interviewed for the development of this guidance said that they felt safe at College, some reported seeing bullying. Name calling was the most common form of bullying experienced, and a few reported being called ‘gay’. A number of learners described racist or homophobic comments and bullying based on religion or culture happening to someone else. Bullying was reported as taking place mainly on the journey to and from college.

Play & Leisure Provision

Play and leisure activities can help young people to work together, build confidence and resilience and develop team playing skills. But a few can find they are always left out or never picked as a partner. They can be humiliated by other young people or by an activity leader or coach. If permitted to continue, these situations can send a message to the group that bullying is acceptable.

Bullying and the fear of bullying can prevent children and young people from playing outside or moving around their neighbourhood. Some children do not play out because they are scared of being bullied. In a survey by Young Voice (of approximately 2000 pupils) around a half of respondents who said they had been bullied ‘a lot’ said they were ‘put off’ going to places like youth or homework clubs, drama or music, Brownies/Scouts/guides, weekend or holiday clubs and adventure playgrounds by ‘people who bully you’. In one survey, nearly half of secondary age young people who are badly bullied say they hardly ever use local parks or playgrounds. Children and young people were asked to give reasons why they did not use parks and playgrounds. Among those who reported being bullied ‘a lot’, 23% of primary age and 15% of secondary age said it is because ‘they are scared by people who do go’, whilst more than 1 in 5 primary and 1 in 10 of secondary respondents said it was because of being ‘chased away or bullied by other children’.

Youth Activities

Youth activities can help young people to make friends, gain new skills and build confidence and resilience. But a few can find they are always left out. If permitted to continue, these situations can send a message to the group that bullying is acceptable.

Many young people look to the youth club as a refuge from bullying they are experiencing elsewhere. Some groups form in response to a particular need, such as to support newcomers, carers or a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender group – these groups report high levels of bullying experienced, but not necessarily within the group. Some of the young people in youth clubs consulted for the development of this guidance reported having been bullied ‘a lot’, although many of these said that the bullying had taken place some time ago.

Children's Homes

Children in care are among the groups who are most vulnerable to bullying. They report twice the level of bullying than other children in primary years and four times the level in secondary years.

Children who are looked after and living away from home are particularly vulnerable, and may face discrimination from other children at school and in the community, simply because they are looked after.

In a consultation for Ofsted’s Children’s Rights Director, two thirds of children in care or living away from home said that bullying is getting worse. 14% said that they were bullied ‘often or most of the time’, while a further 20% were bullied sometimes. When children live together new hierarchies can form, with the strongest bullying the weaker or younger ones. When supervision is limited or staff change frequently, an underlying culture can develop in which children do not report bullying. Looked after children may have several placements and have to adapt to new situations and people repeatedly. They can lose contact with friends and often with extended family members. There may be higher levels of psychiatric disorders, with conduct and anxiety disorders being the most common. The life experiences, lost friendships and family difficulties of some children in care emphasise how important it is that they are protected from bullying and supported to avoid bullying others. Staff may find it difficult to know who are the victims and the perpetrators. Some young people constantly change their status between victim and bully.

Extended Services in and around School

It is expected that all schools will offer access to a core offer of extended services by 2010. Whether the services are on the school site or in a nearby club, managed by the school or a voluntary sector or private organisation, young children and those as old as 14 (17 if they have a disability) are likely to spend considerable time there. Extended services can help young people to gain new skills and build confidence and resilience. But extended activities can be vulnerable to bullying taking place, especially where children and young people perceive that they are in a less-supervised setting in which to carry on bullying which has started during normal school hours. A few children can find they are always left out or never picked as a partner in games. Others are deliberately victimised. If permitted to continue, these situations can send a message to the group that bullying is acceptable.

Children and young people in extended services who were consulted for this guidance confirmed that bullying can follow victims in and out of school, including to after schools clubs and areas around the periphery of schools such as the school gates. The site most commonly mentioned was in the street, where children may be waiting for buses or to move onto another site. Many of the children and young people we spoke to had experienced name calling, some of which involved the use of racist or homophobic comments.

Journeys around the community

Fears about safety limit young people’s use of local amenities. While most children feel safe most of the time, there are those who fear they will be bullied on public transport or in the street, near school gates or on the journey home. The Tellus 3 survey found that 5% said they felt ‘very unsafe’ on public transport while 22% felt ‘a little unsafe’. Several children consulted for this guidance said bullying occurs on buses to and from school. Many also mentioned that it happens walking to or from school. In one survey, approximately half of the respondent at secondary age said it happened ‘in the street’.

Journeys offer unsupervised situations in which large numbers of children and young people may be travelling to or from school, or to other activities. A child may feel he or she cannot get off the bus or train if they are being bullied – there may not be another bus for some time in rural areas and they may risk being late for school or returning home.

Bullying and disruptive behaviour can occur when bus routes meet, bringing pupils from different schools to the same bus station, making some children vulnerable every day.