At High Ongar Primary School, intolerance and bullying are completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated. 

We as a school prevent bullying by:

• Teaching difference and acceptance within the curriculum
• Explicitly teaching kindness within all subject areas
• Explicitly encouraging responsibility by teaching students how to raise awareness to potential bullying situations
• Briefings on anti-bullying 
• Celebrating diversity e.g., LGBTQ+ History Month, Black History Month, Women’s History Month
• Uniform inclusion 
• Student voice

For unkind behaviour to be defined as bullying it must include the following three aspects:

• Repetitive
• Deliberate/ intentional
• Imbalance of power

Bullying is anti-social and will not be tolerated from any member of our School community. It is vital that we encourage good behaviour and respect for others, and to prevent all forms of bullying among pupils. All High Ongar, staff are alert to signs of bullying and act promptly and firmly, demonstrating to pupils that this issue is taken seriously and that the situation will not be allowed to continue. 

Bullying encompasses a wide range of behaviours. 

Bullying is defined as deliberately hurtful behaviour, repeated over a period of time, where it is difficult for those being bullied to defend themselves.  To be defined as bullying, the offending behaviour is repetitive (Has this happened before?), deliberate/ intentional (Has the bully purposely gone to cause harm or distress?) and there is an imbalance of power (Does the bully hold the power within the incident?).

Power is influenced by a range of factors including but not limited to; gender, intelligence, size, age, experience, qualifications, and knowledge

In all cases of bullying, the victim is unable to defend themselves, resulting in persistent distress. It is important to remember that it is often difficult to tell the extent of the hurt or upset caused to individuals who are bullied. 

Bullying can be: 

• Emotional: being unfriendly, excluding, tormenting (e.g., hiding books, threatening gestures)
• Physical: pushing, kicking, hitting, punching or any use of violence
• Racist: racial taunts, graffiti, gestures
• Sexual: unwanted physical contact or sexually abusive comments.
• Homophobic: because of or focussing on sexuality
• Transphobic: because of or focussing on transgender
• Verbal: name-calling, sarcasm, spreading rumours, teasing
• Cyber: all areas of internet, such as email and internet chat room misuse, mobile threats by text messaging and calls, misuse of associated technology, i.e., camera &video facilities
• Intellectual/Neurodiversity (SEND): Being unfriendly, excluding, and abusive to another because of one’s educational needs 

Bringing this issue out into the open amongst all High Ongar pupils will lead to greater understanding of the nature of the problem and will encourage more people to confront and tackle bullying. 

Encouragement to Tell  

All pupils (and parents) want bullying to stop but, in seeking help, they are often afraid of making the situation worse. It is important to develop and maintain an atmosphere in the school where pupils who are being bullied, or others who know about it, feel that they will be listened to and believed, and that the action taken will be swift but sensitive to their concerns.  

Pupils need to be aware that their ‘not telling’ protects the bully or bullies, and gives the message that they can continue, often bullying others too.