Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I was happy to be able to support the work of BeLongTo by increasing its resources for 2013 in order to do this type of work in its local groups throughout the country. The funding I have made available to those youth services will ensure that BeLongTo's local and regional work will continue. That is very much part of the action plan on bullying.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House

Although schools have a lead role in tackling bullying the plan recognises the need to have a broader approach recognising that bullying is no longer limited to classrooms. This means making sure that wherever young people are, they are protected by safety guidelines. It means making sure that wherever young people are, they are supported by an anti-bullying ethos and an anti-bullying framework.

The development of an anti-bullying framework is being prioritised in the context the new whole of Government children and young people’s policy framework. This work is being led by my Department with a view to publication later this year.

My Department is also working to place the Children First guidelines on a statutory footing. Within this process we will explore any additional clarifications that may be required to assist schools in their response to bullying.

I understand that work is also under way in the Department of Education and Skills on developing new anti-bullying procedures for schools in consultation with the education partners with a view to their introduction from next September. The Department will also be engaging with boards of management and parents in relation to co-ordinated training and resources development and will this year develop an evaluation of bullying in schools, which will be carried out by the schools inspectorate from 2014.

The action plan itself provides for a number of awareness raising measures, including the development of an anti-bullying website to provide a single point of access to practical advice and support in tackling and reporting bullying behaviours. Preliminary scoping work is underway in the Department of Education and Skills towards this development.

Organisations and schools throughout the country are running anti-bullying campaigns and transition year students continue to pioneer student-led projects aimed at combating bullying and cyber-bullying. My Department will continue to support the efforts of these projects and of teenagers who want to play a leading role in the national campaign against bullying.

Corporations are also playing their part. I recently organised a number of information nights for parents, teachers and youth workers which were supported by Webwise and Facebook. IBM has just launched free activity kits on cyber bullying, online identity and Internet safety coaching. I hope that companies such as these will support the development of the Government website which will draw together information from various sources in a user-friendly one-stop-shop for parents, teachers, youth workers and teens.

The anti-bullying agenda is a recurring element in all our consultations with young people. Notably, the majority of the 34 Comhairle na nÓg initiatives funded by my Department have identified mental health services, cyber-bullying and homophobic bullying as priority issues for young people. In response, this has led to a number of targeted measures being adopted by service providers across the country.

In recognising the lead role of schools, the National Education Welfare Board has issued guidelines requiring each school to have dedicated policies to prevent or address bullying. Schools must make it clear in their code of behaviour that bullying is unacceptable.

This issue of bullying requires a whole of Government and whole of community approach. I am pleased to see national organisations such as Foróige and the GAA running anti-bullying campaigns that complement the work of Government Departments.

As Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, I am committed to working with my colleagues in Government, and other stakeholders, to ensure that integrated policy responses to combat bullying are high on our agenda.

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