Ms Ann Piggott:

I am interested in the Senator's remarks about empathy because bullies have no empathy whatsoever and sometimes show no remorse either. It is very important that bystanders speak out and stand up, but the bystander may not even see the bullying. For example, if a student who had an incident in the bathroom with a bully meets the perpetrator on the corridor the next day, the perpetrator might sneer at the victim. A friend who sees that may not realise there is anything in it or realise the seriousness of the situation. Some schools have mentoring programmes through which they match sixth years with first years, which helps the first years to settle. It is a very good idea and could be used to progress this idea.