Some forms of bullying are illegal and should be reported to the police. These include:
- violence or assault
- theft
- repeated harassment or intimidation, for example name calling, threats and abusive phone calls, emails or text messages
- hate crimes
By law, all state schools must have a behaviour policy in place that includes measures to prevent all forms of bullying among pupils.
This policy is decided by the school. All teachers, pupils and parents must be told what it is.
The National Bullying Helpline provides guidance and help for parents worried about their child being bullied. The publication Is your child being bullied, A step by step guide for parents’is available to download from their website.
Information from gov.uk upon how to report bullying to schools and when it is appropriate to involve the police.