AQW 20237/17-22

Mr John Blair
Alliance Party
South Antrim

Tabled Date: 10/06/2021
Answered On Date: 11/06/2021
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Education for a breakdown of the funding allocated to prevent homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying in schools.

Answer:

The Addressing Bullying in Schools (NI) Act 2016, which comes into effect from 01 September 2021, requires schools to record incidents or alleged incidents of bullying, their motivation and their outcome including bullying in relation to sexual orientation.

Implementation of the Act should assist schools in identifying issues between pupils and encourage the school to put in place suitable protocols and educational programmes for dealing with those issues.

My Department provides funding to the Northern Ireland Anti-Bullying Forum (NIABF), which is an independent body comprising 25 statutory and non-statutory organisations involved directly or indirectly in the reduction of all forms of bullying and creating a safe environment for children and young people.

The Forum delivers awareness raising activities through events such as the annual Anti-Bullying Week (ABW); visits to schools to work with pupils and staff; and through the production of best practice guides to help schools strengthen their anti-bullying policies and respond effectively to individual incidents.

Where a school identifies a particular problem, such as homophobic, biphobic or transphobic bullying, the NIABF co-ordinator can signpost them to Forum member organisations who can provide expert advice.