Hansard

I begin by reminding the chamber that my husband is a teacher.

When the Equalities and Human Rights Committee started taking evidence on the bullying and harassment of children, it was apparent that it was far more widespread and deep-seated than anyone had imagined. I put on record my thanks to everyone who gave evidence. Some of the testimony that we heard cannot have been easy to give, and I hope that the people who gave it know that they have already helped others through their bravery.

I am sorry to say that some of the stories that we heard were absolutely shocking. We should not shy away from the fact that, in some of our schools, bullying is very real, is affecting children’s mental health and is preventing some people from reaching their full potential as a result of its profoundly damaging impact on their self-esteem.

When he gave evidence to the Equalities and Human Rights Committee in June, the Deputy First Minister said in his opening statement:

“I make it absolutely clear that the Government considers bullying of any kind to be completely unacceptable. Wherever it occurs, we have a responsibility to take action to deal with it quickly and effectively. The Government believes that there is no place in Scotland for prejudice or discrimination and that everyone deserves to be treated fairly.”—[Official Report, Equalities and Human Rights Committee, 22 June 2017; c 1.]

That statement was very welcome. We have a duty of care to every young person, and I thank the Deputy First Minister for his honesty in that evidence session. It is testament to the work of the committee and the clerks that the Government has agreed or is considering all of the report’s recommendations.

We heard about pupils being picked on for their sexual orientation, a disability, their religion, their skin colour, their gender or their foreign accent. Moreover, sexual harassment, with girls being rated and given nicknames based on how they look or dress, is rife. We also see children being tormented and made to feel of less worth, because of their socioeconomic background or their appearance.

As has been mentioned, there has been a huge rise in social media use, with cyberbullying now a massive problem that can happen at any time of the day, and not just at school. Assaults, including those of a sexual nature, are being videoed, and we had a robust discussion around the issue of consent. Technology is moving so quickly that it is hard to keep up with applications such as Snapchat and how they can and are being used. Teachers need to be equipped with the knowledge and understanding of how to deal with these issues but, as a society, we need to teach our children why they are wrong in the first place. Teachers can do only so much; parents, too, have a responsibility to educate and inform.

We all know that being a teacher is a very important and sometimes very difficult job. They shape the future, and they have the chance to ensure that our young people are nurtured, respected and listened to. Yes, they teach them facts and figures, but they also have a duty of pastoral care. Unfortunately, however, the committee heard some very uncomfortable evidence about the conduct of some teachers and local authorities. We heard about lack of care; lack of understanding of personal issues; lack of response to incidents of bullying; lack of proper investigations by some local authorities of parents’ complaints; and a complete disregard of scrutiny or holding anyone to account. I should put all that in perspective by making it clear that not every teacher in every classroom behaves in that way, but even one is one too many. There are many brilliant teachers in schools all over the country of whom we are rightly proud and a minority of individuals are not representative of the sector. Indeed, I am sure that most teachers will be horrified to hear such accounts.

In our committee’s report, we ask the Scottish Government to work with teacher training providers to ensure that greater emphasis is placed on equalities, the handling of bullying incidents, the protected characteristics and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. It would be helpful if the Scottish Government could provide more information on how the GTCS’s review of professional standards will take into account the Equality Act 2010 as well as the committee’s recommendations on continuous professional development. The standards for registration set out a number of behaviours that teachers must adhere to, and we must also make sure that all local authorities are aware of how such reports and incidents are dealt with. Education directors, managers and officers all have a duty of care, and we ask the Scottish Government and the education authorities to make CPD training on equalities, the protected characteristics and children’s human rights compulsory.

We also ask the Scottish Government to take steps to ensure that all teacher training makes it clear that section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988 was repealed in Scots law by the Scottish Parliament on 15 March 2001. The fact that that was one of the first pieces of legislation enacted by our Parliament demonstrates our outright rejection of the denial of LGBTI-inclusive education and gives us the opportunity to go further in the provision of such education, especially with regard to relationships, sexual health and parenthood education. There are great examples in Scotland of schools with a zero-tolerance approach to bullying, and we have a lot to learn from them. We need to foster a whole-school ethos in which everyone is equal and respected—and by everyone, I mean both pupils and teachers, because respect goes both ways.

As a final ask, I think that it is essential that all the equalities and human rights organisations from whom the committee heard are consulted as we go forward, including representatives from those that deal with race, gender, LGBTI and young people’s issues as well as children’s charities. If we are to stamp out bullying in our schools and make our classrooms truly inclusive, we have to make sure that the process to get there is truly inclusive, too. As LGBT Scotland has rightly noted, an inclusive approach—