Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 22 June 2021

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills

School Bullying and the Impact on Mental Health: Discussion (Resumed)

Ms Yvonne Keating:

We are aware of the need to develop and strengthen both our oversight and reporting processes when it comes to anti-bullying. Where there are deficiencies on how a school deals with anti-bullying issues that cross the threshold into child protection issues, for example, there are failures in record keeping or reporting mechanisms, they are always reported clearly in inspectorate's inspection reports and in the child protection and safeguarding inspection reports, which comprise two reports, an initial and a final report. In each case where there are deficiencies in how a school is dealing with anti-bullying cases, they are clearly reported in those child protection and safeguarding inspection reports.