UK schools worst in Europe for bullying

Bullying in secondary schools is worse in the UK than the rest of Europe, a new British Council
survey has found.
The study, published today, found that nearly half of UK secondary school pupils (46%) think
that bullying is a problem in their school and is caused by students' language difficulties, skin
colour, race and religion.
The situation is perceived to be worse in England, where 48% of pupils think bullying is a
problem in school, compared to 43% of pupils in Scotland and 32% in Wales.
But more UK students (42%) said they were happier in school most of the time than on average
in the rest of Europe (33%).
They were also more likely to feel it was "very important" to their future to do well at school:
85% of UK pupils compared to 75% of European.
The research was conducted across schools in Europe - from Italy, Portugal, Netherlands,
Belgium, England, Scotland, Wales, Germany and Spain - chosen for their mix of children from
different backgrounds.
A total of 3,500 children were asked a series of multiple-choice questions, including over 1,500
from the UK.
Across Europe, first generation migrants were 50% more likely to have been made fun of in the
last three months. While in the UK, they were 24% more likely to have been bullied.
Some 41% of respondents said they had been made fun of because of language difficulties, 31%
said skin colour, 29% because of racial difference and 27% because of their religion.
A further 41% said it owed to the clothes pupils wear and 44% because of differences in physical
appearance.
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When asked how to remedy the situation, one-quarter of the children replied that they think
there should be more religious holidays recognised in the school calendar.
Over a third (38%) wanted more time in class to discuss differences in backgrounds and
cultures, and many thought that inductions for migrant children and parents when they start
school could be improved.
Headteachers and students - aged 13 to 16 - from the 47 schools are taking these findings and
their personal experiences to create a white paper of recommendations, which will be presented
to the EU commission today.
This precedes the commission's own green paper due out later this year.
The research is part of a project designed to kick-start a pan-European improvement in diversity
and integration in schools. It will be conducted again next year to measure change across
Europe's schools.

Stephan Roman, regional director for west Europe at the British Council, said: "Research out
earlier this week showed that bullying is endemic in schools. By working with young people we
are finding ways to change this.
"They know - as we do - that learning about other people and understanding different cultures is
the key to a better school experience for everyone.
Numbers of children who said that bullying is a problem in school
(Source: British Council)
Italy - 33%
Portugal - 35%
Netherlands - 16%
Belgium - 21%
UK - 48%
Scotland - 43%
Wales - 32%
Germany - 29%
Spain - 22%