'Seven in 10' bullied at school

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Seven out of 10 children have been bullied at school, a survey of thousands of pupils, parents and teachers suggests.

Of the 4,772 children who responded to the survey, 69% reported being bullied, with name-calling the major issue.

Among parents, 44% of those who had complained to a school felt their concerns were not taken seriously.

Teachers told the survey by charity Bullying Online that they needed more training to deal with the problem.

Of the 323 teachers who took part, only 40% were confident they had all the skills they needed to address instances of bullying.

And 78% thought there should be more in-school training.

More than 71% of parents said their child had been physically hurt by a bully and 30% of those needed to see a doctor.

And 60% said their children had taken time off school because they were being bullied.

Pupils said bullying took place around the school, notably the playground (30%), the classroom (25%), corridors (21%), the lunch queue (14%) and the toilets (7%).

'Scandalous'

Bullying Online said more needed to be done to protect the vulnerable.

"We reply to thousands of e-mails a year, so we knew the problem was a big one, but even so we were shocked by what we found out," said its director Liz Carnell.

"This is a scandalous situation and it needs tough measures to sort it out.

"If assaults were happening in the workplace, the attackers would be prosecuted but in many cases the bullies are getting off scot-free without any punishment at all."

A spokesman for England's Department for Education and Skills said: "Bullying of any kind should not be tolerated.

"It is not part of growing up and it doesn't make anyone stronger - on the contrary, it simply alienates people and undermines their confidence.

"We have ensured that heads have the powers they need to prevent and tackle bullying, with guidance and support to help prevent it happening in the first place."