AQW 21228/22-27
Ms Connie Egan
Alliance Party
North Down
Tabled Date: 23/01/2025
Answered On Date: 05/02/2025
Priority Written: No
Question:
To ask the Minister of Education to detail any action he will take to address incidents of hazing in post-primary school sports teams.
Answer:
The Addressing Bullying in Schools Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 (“the Act”) states that the Board of Governors (BoG) must determine the measures to be taken at the school with a view to preventing bullying involving a registered pupil at the school. This includes while the pupil is in the lawful control or charge of a member of the staff of the school or while the pupil is receiving educational provision arranged on behalf of the school and provided elsewhere than on the premises of the school. The Addressing Bullying in Schools Implementation Team (ABSIT) within the Education Authority (EA) provides support for schools, educational settings, young people and parents to help them understand the requirements of the Act. ABSIT has a focus on preventative education to embed cultures that eradicate bullying. The team also provides children, young people and parents/carers, with support to deal with specific incidents of bullying. While the EA do not offer any specific service or support directly to school sport teams regarding hazing, and ABSIT do not refer to “hazing” specifically in guidance and advice, behaviours such as this would be addressed through the wider definitions of bullying. The use of the Addressing Bullying Type Behaviour Policy and use of Bullying Concern Assessment Form (BCAF) may be appropriate in this incident. A school’s BoG has the statutory remit to oversee the implementation of the Act in their setting, within the context of the pastoral suite of Positive Behaviour, Safeguarding and other associated policies. Article 3 of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 as amended by Article 19 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 requires a school to have a discipline policy which outlines the behaviour it expects from pupils and the sanctions it will impose for breaches in discipline. The Order does not dictate any fixed format for the discipline policy. Responsibility for discipline within schools’ rests with the school Principal and its BoG and they should promote positive behaviour among pupils attending the school to safeguard their welfare and facilitate their educational progress at school. The Department’s guidance, "Pastoral Care in Schools: Promoting Positive Behaviour" sets out how a school should develop a discipline/positive behaviour policy using a whole school approach and in consultation with pupils and parents. In addition, the BoG has a statutory duty to safeguard pupils (Articles 17, 18 and 19 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 refer). Neither the Department nor the Education Authority has had any communication with Ulster Rugby incidents arising during the Ulster Schools' Cup.
|