NSW and SA unite to curb bullying with landmark agreement

THE NSW and South Australia state governments will collaborate on measures to combat bullying in schools.

Deputy Premier and NSW Education Minister Prue Car and her South Australian education counterpart Blair Boyer signed a joint agreement to tackle the scourge of bullying.

The joint effort follows the success of last year’s groundbreaking Social Media Summit, organised jointly by the NSW and SA Premiers, to explore and address the impacts of social media on children and young people.

The MOU binds the two states to “undertake a coordinated approach to information sharing and collaboration to minimise the impacts of bullying in schools and support positive school environments”.

Work will commence immediately on the sharing of best practice prevention strategies that are already working in NSW and SA schools, curriculum materials and tools for educators to combat bullying, including cyberbullying, in our schools.

Last year NSW Premier Chris Minns and Deputy Premier Car announced they would lead the development of a statewide bullying framework for all NSW schools.

The regulator of schools, the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA), has already convened its first meeting with the school sectors to progress the work on the anti-bullying framework.

“Bullying is a scourge that impacts children across all school sectors, states and territories, and we all have a crucial role to play in stamping it out,” Minister for Education Prue Car said.

“NSW is leading the way nationally to address bullying and cyberbullying so children at all schools feel safe and supported to focus on their learning.

“As we progress this work in NSW, we look forward to working with our state and federal counterparts on a consistent national approach.”