Teachernet, Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying

Safe to Learn: Embedding anti-bullying work in schools

You can download the following documents as PDFs:

Guidance

Executive summary

1. Understanding cyberbullying

2. Preventing cyberbullying

3. Responding to cyberbullying

Further resources

A. Key advice to parents and carers on cyberbullying

B. Key advice to children and young people on cyberbullying

C. What children and young people say

D. Useful websites and resources

E. Case study: Letter inviting parents to cyberbullying information event

F. Case study: Information letter on sanctions

G. Case study: Example Acceptable Use Policy (AUP)

As more and more schools are having to respond to the growing challenge of cyberbullying, it is vital that schools understand the issue, know how to prevent and respond to incidents and are updated on the legal issues surrounding this challenging subject.

The DCSF has worked with children's charity Childnet International to provide this web-based guidance that forms part of the anti-bullying guidance Safe to learn: Embedding anti-bullying work in schools. You will be able to find important information and clear advice on the subject, and review how your school takes action.

Quote from a pupil:
I felt that no-one understood what I was going through. I didn't know who was sending me these messages, and I felt powerless to know what to do.

Quote from a parent:
Having my daughter show me text messages from nearly everyone in her class all saying derogatory things about her was devastating.

Quote from a staff member:
The accusation about me which the students put on their website was horrendous. Within hours it seemed that the whole school had read this message.

Quote from Childnet International:
The internet and mobile phones have such positive power to transform children's lives for the better. However, when they are misused they can cause real pain and distress. Childnet is delighted to have worked with the DCSF and with members of the Cyberbullying Taskforce in drawing up this guidance, which we hope will be of real practical help to schools.

Childnet has produced a summary of this guidance and a film for schools to use in addressing this issue. These are available here.

This guidance was developed for the DCSF by Childnet International and in consultation with the DCSF Cyberbullying Taskforce, on which representatives of the following organisations sit (in alphabetical order):

Anti-Bullying Alliance (ABA)
AOL (UK) Limited
Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL)
Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL)
BBC
Beatbullying
Bebo
Becta
Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP)
Childnet International
Children's Charities' Coalition for Internet Safety
Cyberspace Research Unit, University of Central Lancashire
Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR)
Fox Interactive Media/MySpace
Get Connected
Google/YouTube
Home Office
Kidscape
London Councils
Microsoft (MSN and Windows Live services)
Ministry of Justice (MoJ)
Mobile Broadband Group
National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT)
The National Association of Schoolmasters/Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT)
National Governors' Association (NGA)
National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC)
National Union of Teachers (NUT)
O2
Orange
Parent Governors Representatives Network
Professional Association of Teachers (PAT)
The Carphone Warehouse
The Samaritans
T-Mobile UK
Unison
Unit for School and Family Studies, Goldsmiths, University of London
Vodafone
Yahoo! UK and Ireland
Youth Justice Board (YJB)
York St John University

The Department would also like to thank the staff and pupils at Avenue Primary School, Leicester, and Hamilton Community College, Leicester, for contributing to the development of this guidance.

Published: 21 September 2007