Greensborough College students and staff have the right to a safe and caring environment that promotes learning, personal growth and positive self esteem. Greensborough College is committed to providing this environment and all school community members have the responsibility to ensure that this occurs.

Definition

The Greensborough College definition of bullying is:
A. Action which causes another individual to feel insecure/ unsafe in and around the College. For example, verbal threats, harassment, abuse, whispering, name calling, kicking, punching, teasing, discrimination, and stealing, destroying/hiding/defacing property, put downs, gossip, exclusion, stalking, ganging up, negative encouragement, phone calls and electronic mediums.
B. Interaction such as onlookers and supporters of bullies will also be considered bullying.
This definition was formed by staff, students and parents through survey methods undertaken in April 2004
Preventative

Any action

Greensborough College aims to maintain a culture of positive student relationships and the College refuses to accept that bullying is part of school life. The College enables and facilitates students and teachers to work together towards eradicating and preventing any form of bullying through the following actions:
A. Encourage students to seek help from teachers, Homegroup teachers and Year Level Coordinators.
B. Provide staff with clear procedures on how to deal with bullying issues/incidents and provide professional development for staff when and where necessary.
C. Encourage staff to model appropriate behaviour on a consistent basis.
D. Develop and continue to support student leadership programs eg SRC, Peer Mediation, and Peer Support.
E. Develop a publicity program that promotes positive peer relationships eg posters, talks and cross age interaction.
F. Ensure inclusion of personal development materials into the mainstream curriculum including work on bullying, tolerance and positive social behaviours.
G. Publish the policy in appropriate College publications to promote community awareness of the College’s approach to bullying.
H. Include an anti-bullying policy in the Student Code of Conduct that will be applied in a consistent and fair manner by all staff.
I. Respond to reports of bullying by students as outlined in this policy.
J. Establish a bullying register to monitor the behaviour of offending students and victims in each sub school.
K. Ensure that teaching staff adopt and apply a uniform social competencies approach through the pastoral care program.

Consequences

First Offence:

An official warning will be given by the Year Level Coordinator and the incident will be recorded on the Bullying Register which will be kept in the Coordinator’s Office. Contact will be made with the parents of the offender if deemed necessary. There will be a meeting involving the various parties and the Coordinator. The offending student may be referred for a mediation session to be facilitated by an appropriate staff member (Year Level Coordinator/Student Welfare Coordinator). The student who has been subjected to bullying (victim) may be referred for counselling by an appropriate staff member (Year Level Coordinator/Student Welfare Coordinator) and contact will be made with the Student’s Parents / Guardians if deemed appropriate.

Second Offence:

Parents/Guardians will be contacted and or an interview organised depending on the situation regarding the student’s behaviour. The student’s name will be recorded on the Bullying Register and incident details will be recorded. Sanctions will be applied at the Co-ordinator’s discretion.

The student who has been subjected to bullying (victim) will be counselled by the appropriate student welfare/Year Level Coordinator and contact will be made with the student’s parents/guardians.

A preventative strategy / action plan will be developed and implemented to protect the rights of the victim at school.

Third and Subsequent Offences:

The student will be suspended and a Parent/Guardian interview will be organised. The student’s name and incident details will be entered into the Bullying Register.

Further sanctions may be applied depending on the severity of the bullying, eg a Letter of Restitution signed by parents , EWS, Principal’s Detention, behaviour contracts, yard sanctions, suspension, student welfare counselling, and education programs. The incident may also result in the student being withdrawn from classes immediately and Parents/Guardians being contacted to arrange for their child to be collected from school.

At any stage a student may be referred for counselling and an appropriate educational program devised to suit the individual or group.

Effected students who have been bullied will be supported, advised and where necessary, offered counselling. Parents/Guardians will be consulted. Action may take a number of forms:
Informal chats with a teacher, Homegroup teacher or Year Level Co-ordinator with whom the student feels most comfortable to enable advice to be given/progress to be checked.
Regular Parent/Guardian contact.
Professional counselling if required.
Resilience training that equips students with appropriate skills and strategies to deal with bullies.
Peer mediation.
Up to a year of redemption will be negotiated with the offender that is commensurate with the severity of the bullying offence. Thereafter the offender’s name will be removed from the register, if within one term’s review period he/she maintains a clean record. A minimum one term review period within the redemption period will apply to all major offenders.

This policy will be reviewed tri-annually. The policy will also be further developed to encompass bullying between students, teachers, parents/guardians and members of the wider College community.