$10 million will be injected into a new national campaign to counter bullying at Australian schools.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare said all state and territory counterparts had agreed to the new plan, recommended by the Anti-Bullying Rapid Review, which was launched in February.
Minister Clare said all Education Ministers had asked for an implementation plan so they could consider actions that could be taken to implement the recommendations.
He said the Federal Government would back the plan with a $10 million investment to begin the work needed.
“The Anti-Bullying Rapid Review recommends that schools should respond within two school days to a complaint or incident.
“If we’re going to properly tackle bullying, we need to nip it in the bud and to act early.”
Minister Clare said of the initial investment, $5 million would be spent on a national awareness campaign and another $5 million out towards new resources for teachers, students and parents.
He said this would include resources for students on how to be “upstanders” against bullying with evidence showing peer-based approaches can be powerful.
“The Government’s social media ban for Under 16s will also come into effect from December 10, which will help to reduce online bullying.”
Minister Clare said this was just the start and the hard work was needed to make schools safe and protect children.
“Bullying is cruel and it’s dangerous. It doesn’t just leave physical scars, it leaves invisible scars that can last a lifetime.”
Minister Clare said the Anti-Bullying Rapid Review final report included eight recommendations that aimed to ensure that every school offers a safe, inclusive and respectful learning environment where bullying and other harmful behaviours were not accepted.
He said the report includes a National Standard on addressing Bullying in Australian Schools, intended to provide a best practice framework for schools to build into the processes and policies they already had established in the school.
“This is not a one-size-fits-all response to bullying. It recognises the need for a comprehensive whole-of-school approach that is appropriately tailored to local context and diverse student cohorts.”
Access the final report from the Anti-Bullying Rapid Review.
