Strood Academy has a robust anti bullying policy. If a child is being bullied, in the first instance they should speak to their Form Tutor who is their first point of contact.
If parents would like to bring an issue to the Academy’s attention there is a drop in clinic, no appointment necessary, daily from 08:20 to 08:40 during term time. Additionally, the dedicated email address bullying@stroodacademy.org may be used by students or parents.
Of course we would hope that a conflict does not get to the point where a student feels that they are being bullied. We have trained up some selected students to be Peer Mediators in order to resolve problems before they escalate.
Peer mediation is a process in which students in conflict are guided by two trained mediators through a series of steps to find their own way of resolving a problem(s). Pupils take ownership of their resolution of the problem or dispute. Through mediation young people are empowered to understand their own behaviour and the behaviour of others around them.
Mediation gives students an opportunity to voice their feelings about incidents which to some might seem trivial, but to them are hurtful in a safe environment. Peer mediation enables pupils to see others as human being rather than enemies or bullies.
Students wishing to take part in peer mediation should contact their college Pastoral Manager in the first instance.
We have strong links with a range of external agencies to support our students, some of whom work in the school as required. Embedded in our PSHEE curriculum is careers advice, and information as to how students can obtain guidance and counselling.
Within the school we have staff from Connexions who can give support on a range of issues (not just careers’ interviews) and have access to more specialist advice if required.
We also work with counsellors, social services, housing associations, drugs and alcohol awareness schemes and other external agencies as required.
The first person any student is likely to speak to if they have a cause for concern would be their form tutor, or for a subject matter their subject teacher. In the case of student wanting to discuss something difficult, however, it is quite acceptable for them to speak to the member of staff they feel most at ease with approaching. We also have some designated child protection officers who have had specialist training: in the case of disclosure, all staff know who these are and when to refer to them.
NELFT
Medway Young Persons Well-being Service is available 24hrs a day, 7 days a week if you are concerned about yourself or another’s mental health and well-being. Please call 03000 300 1981.