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'One in four children bullied at school'

28/10/2008

Almost one in four (39 per cent) children aged between ten and 15 have been bullied at school, a new survey has found.

The annual Tellus3 survey of children and young people, published on Tuesday by Ofsted, the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills, found that bullying was a major concern among youngsters as was smoking, drinking and drugs.

Today's study asked almost 150,000 ten- to 15-year-olds how they viewed their lives and how good local authorities are at providing services for young people.

While in general the majority of the children's responses were positive, the survey claimed the level of drinking, drug use and smoking needed to be addressed.

Chief inspector of education, children's services and skills, Christine Gilbert, said: "This survey was conducted to learn more about the concerns of children and young people and to share this information with local authorities, schools and policy makers.

"The survey finds much that is positive in their lives, and encouragingly some things have improved since last year’s survey. However, more needs to be done to support concerns for those children who do not feel safe in schools, those who are bullied and children who smoke, drink and misuse drugs.

"Many young people want access to better information and guidance, and it is the responsibility of agencies such as local councils, as well as schools, to ensure children get the advice they need in order to make the right decisions for their futures."

The majority of the children and young people surveyed, 69 per cent, said they are happy and almost all, 95 per cent, said they have one or more good friends.

However, 32 per cent of ten- to 15-year-olds, when asked what worried them most said their body. And one third said they wanted better information and advice about sex and relationships.

Today's survey also found that 39 per cent of young people said they had been bullied at school and over a quarter said that bullying was a significant worry for them; with one in nine who responded saying they felt unsafe in school, or going to and from school.

Although the figure is down from last year, one is six ten- to 15-year-olds also said they got drunk regularly and at least six per cent admitted to have used drugs in four weeks before the survey.

John Freeman, on behalf of the Association of Directors of Children's Services, said of today's results: "The Tellus3 survey continues to provide very useful information to local authorities, supplementing our local surveys with national benchmarking. We are delighted that most children and young people say that they are happy, healthy and feel safe in their schools and communities. However, the survey points up continuing concerns with bullying, and this is a priority action for many local areas.

"For a minority, the long-term health and social impacts of alcohol, smoking, and drugs remain a concern, and again addressing these issues is a priority for schools, colleges and children's trusts."

In response to the Ofsted report, Emma-Jane Cross, chief executive of Beatbullying, also said: "It is shocking that so few young people feel that their schools deal with bullying well. If we do not tackle bullying effectively in schools, we are failing in our duty to give every young person the opportunities they deserve and need to succeed.

"Over a quarter of young people report bullying to be a "significant" worry for them. Young people who are being bullied at school are not able to make the most of themselves and their talents, because their ability to learn and to contribute to society is over shadowed by the constant fear of being bullied.

"Peer mentoring programmes are proven to tackle bullying effectively, and although the government has started to pilot this work in schools, bullying prevention programmes need to be rolled out immediately in order to reach the majority of young people who tell us they need it."