COUNCIL chiefs have insisted they are fully committed to tackling bullying and believe ‘strong’ support systems are in place.
A spokesman told The Gazette staff encourage children and parents to speak to someone at school if they have any concerns.
A council spokesman said: “Ensuring the wellbeing of all our pupils in Renfrewshire is a priority for every school and we take all reports of bullying extremely seriously.
“The statistics show last year there was just over one report per school in our primary schools and five in our secondaries which we believe shows we have strong support systems in place.
READ OUR FULL REPORT ON THE RISE OF BULLYING IN RENFREWSHIRE
“Our anti-bullying policy outlines the range of robust measures we have in place, which includes a significant emphasis on the professional development of our staff which enables them to support pupils affected by bullying and take the appropriate actions to prevent bullying behaviour from taking place.
“We endeavour to work closely with our pupils and their parents to ensure they have the appropriate support in place to respond to any incidents of bullying, including providing clear reporting methods which allow pupils to feel assured their report will be treated in confidence.”
READ MORE FROM OUR SPECIAL REPORT: EIS insists teachers are ‘pro-active’ over bullying
“If any child, young person or parent has a concern about bullying, we encourage them to speak to someone at school, whether it be the head or class teacher, a classroom assistant, or in some schools, a buddy or playground friend that is an older pupil.”
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