Bullying 'a culture of silence'

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Many young people witness bullying at school but do not tell an adult, a survey suggests. The Anti-Bullying Alliance said more than half of seven to 18-year-olds polled had seen another young person being bullied during the past year. The survey of 1,143 pupils in Britain found 38% did not attempt to get help and 14% did not want to be a "snitch". Sir Alan Steer, the government's expert on classroom behaviour, said standing by simply encouraged the bullies. In an article for the BBC News website, Sir Alan, head of Seven Kings High School, Essex, said schools must take all steps possible to root out bullying. Sir Alan Steer's viewpoint "We know that bullying can cause intense damage, both psychological and physical, to children and young people," said Sir Alan. "Yet if we are to succeed in preventing bullying, it is vital for schools to promote a culture where it is not tolerated, and where children and young people feel able to speak out when they witness it." Standing by The Anti-Bullying Alliance, which commissioned the survey, said the "culture of silence" must be broken. Children aged seven to 10 were more likely to fear being bullied themselves (24%), while 22% of 11 to14-year-olds were afraid of being called a "snitch". Fifteen to 18-year-olds tended to think that bullying was none of their business (24%). The survey also suggests girls were more ready to ask for help to stop bullying than boys, with 66% of female respondents saying they had asked for help in preventing bullying, compared with 55% of boys. "It's great news that the majority of children and young people who witnessed bullying felt able to ask for help, but as our poll shows, we need to do much more to break the culture of silence in which bullying can thrive," said Gill Frances, manager of the Anti-Bullying Alliance. "Our findings suggest that while many schools have excellent anti-bullying policies, we need to ensure that everyone in the school community - staff and parents as well as children and young people - understands what those policies are and how to act upon them," she said. "We want children and young people to have the confidence to get help whenever and wherever they see bullying - and we want the adults in their lives to take action to tackle bullying and prevent it from happening again." The poll comes ahead of anti-bullying week - coordinated by the Anti-Bullying Alliance and supported by the Department for Education and Skills - which starts next Monday. The focus this year is on the bystander.