How to write a statement about bullying: step-by-step instructions

How to correctly write a statement about bullying and what information it should contain

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Education ombudsman Serhii Gorbachev told how to write and correctly issue a statement about bullying in educational institutions. The effectiveness of the case will depend on this and will increase the chances that the case will go to court and the guilty will be punished.

As noted ombudsman, according to the Procedure for responding to cases of bullying, all participants in the educational process are obliged to report such a case to the management of the educational institution. You can also contact the police by writing a statement.

“Of the complaints about bullying received by the Education Ombudsman Service, some were incorrectly drafted, did not contain evidence or at least a description of the facts, which makes consideration impossible.

It is also important for the court, because when the application is considered, there must be facts and evidence that clearly indicate bullying. In part of the cases, the bullers remained unpunished due to improperly presented facts and evidence to the court.” – emphasized Gorbachev.

Filing and consideration of claims about bullying is carried out in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “About education” and “About the appeal of citizens“. The Ombudsman recommends submitting them in writing to the director of the educational institution.

The application must include:

• Full Name;
• citizen’s place of residence;
• outline the content of the application;
• signature of the applicant and date of submission;
• if the submission is in electronic format, then the e-mail address must be indicated. In such appeals, the use of a qualified electronic signature do not require.
  

It is also important in the statement about bullying clearly describe the events that took place, without personal evaluations and emotional statements. This is important in order to identify the fact of harassment and punish the perpetrators.

The Education Ombudsman Service emphasizes: the court does not recognize individual cases of conflicts as bullying. However, if they have resulted in serious consequences (e.g. bodily injury), the police should be contacted.

In such cases, it is important to record the details: the date and time of the conflict, its description, and record witnesses. This will be needed if this situation happens again.

A detailed description of what happened

First of all, it is necessary to indicate the status of the applicant: the victim, the victim’s representatives (parents or guardians) or a witness, as well as such data as when the harassment began, how long it lasts, and describe each event that confirms this.

When describing events, it is important to indicate:

• date, time and place of the event;
• a detailed description of the facts of bullying. Each event can be highlighted with a separate subheading;
• the consequences it caused;
• information from witnesses and a description of their actions;
• how it was reported to the employees of the educational institution, the director or other people who were present. If it was via text message, take a screenshot and add it to the application;
• description of the reaction to the event;
• evidence of what happened (photo, video, audio recording, etc.).
  

The application must be registered at the educational institution. It is necessary to write it in two copies or make a copy.

After it has been registered, an employee of the educational institution must write the entry number and date on one of them and give it to the applicant, while the other remains at the school.

“Demand the registered copy in your hands. This is a confirmation of the appeal to the manager and obliges him to consider the situation regarding bullying and convene a special committee to consider the case of bullying.” Serhii Gorbachev emphasized.

If the school management receives a statement about bullying, it is obliged to report it to the police within one day. Failure to inform is punishable by Article 173-4 the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses.

As explained in the Ministry of Education and Science, the head of the educational institution should not investigate cases of bullying. This is not his competence, but the work of the police.

Law enforcement officers check the information provided in the statement and determine whether it was really bullying.

If it is not confirmed, this is reported to the director of the educational institution and to all those mentioned in the application.

We used to toldwhat to do about bullying and who is to blame.