Dignity in the Workplace Policy

Dignity at Work Policy

Introduction

It is the policy of the Board of Management of St. Patrick’s BNS, Hollypark to promote an environment within which all employees will be treated with dignity. This school is committed to a positive work environment where work is done in an atmosphere of respect, collaboration, openness and equality.

The Board of Management further recognises that all employees have the right to a workplace free from bullying and harassment and is fully committed to ensuring that all employees are able to enjoy that right.

It is recognised that bullying and harassment can seriously damage working and social conditions and it will not be tolerated during the course of work or any other activity of the school.

There is a responsibility on all employees to be aware of this policy and to promote a working environment free of threat, harassment and intimidation. It is important to distinguish bullying and harassment, from normal social interaction at work involving mutually acceptable behaviour.

This policy applies to bullying and harassment not only by staff but also by any person with whom an employee might reasonably expect to come in contact in the course of his/her school activities including visitors to the school. In any case, the commitment to a positive workplace, where dignity at work is respected, prevails.

Aims of Policy
This policy aims to raise awareness among staff about the importance of fostering positive working relations with one’s colleagues and to give practical guidance to employers and employees on:

What is meant by workplace bullying and harassment
How it may be prevented
What steps to take if it does occur to ensure that adequate procedures are readily available to deal with the problem and to prevent it’s recurrence.

This policy also aims to ensure that the Board of Management of St. Patrick’s BNS, Hollypark is compliant with current legislation in relation to the Health & Safety Act 2005 and the Code of Practice on the Prevention of Workplace Bullying (May 2007)

The Policy in Practice
The Board of Management of St. Patrick’s BNS, Hollypark recognises the importance of promoting positive harmonious relationships within the school community by ensuring that all people, both adults and pupils, are treated with dignity and respect. It is agreed that we will work to make this school a good place to work. To that end, in our school, we aim to create a supportive workplace atmosphere in which:

Regular, transparent, open and direct communication and opportunities for debate are encouraged.
Collaborative decision making and constructive discussion based on consultation within the school community is fostered.
The different roles performed in the school by each member of staff (teaching and non-teaching) are acknowledged and affirmed.
There is fair treatment of all staff, including fair systems of selection and promotion in line with agreed procedures as outlined by the Department of Education and Skills.
The entitlement of each member of staff to be treated with respect and dignity is recognised.
An awareness of the importance of demonstrating a sense of fair play, tolerance and goodwill is created.
It is recognised that there are certain behaviours which are not acceptable among staff members and which create negative staff relations.
It is recognised that it is critical to resolve conflict at the earliest opportunity before it is allowed to fester and result in inevitable conflict.
All staff are aware of and have access to copies of school policies and procedures covering curricular and administrative areas.
The Board of Management will ensure that policies are implemented fairly and consistently.

WHAT IS WORKPLACE BULLYING?
For the purposes of the procedures outlined in this document, the Board of Management has adopted this definition of workplace bullying:

Workplace Bullying is repeated inappropriate behaviour, direct or indirect, whether verbal, physical or otherwise, conducted by one or more persons against another or others, at the place of work and/or in the course of employment, which could reasonably be regarded as undermining the individual’s right to dignity at work. An isolated incident of the behaviour described in this definition may be an affront to dignity at work but as a once off incident is not considered to be bullying. (As defined in the Report of the Task Force on the Prevention of Workplace Bullying, March 2001)

Bullying behaviour generally amounts to psychological abuse which causes serious pain and suffering. Studies have shown that any person may become a target, irrespective of their personality or ability. In addition to its unacceptable effects on persons who are its targets, workplace bullying and harassment is extremely detrimental to organisational effectiveness.

In summary, workplace bullying can take many different forms, which usually include:

Purposely undermining someone;
Targeting someone for special negative treatment;
Manipulation of an individual‘s reputation;
Social exclusion or isolation;
Intimidation;
Aggressive or obscene language;
Jokes that are obviously offensive to one individual by spoken word or email;
Intrusion by pestering, spying and stalking;
Unreasonable assignments to duties which are obviously unfavourable to one individual;
Repeated requests with impossible deadline or impossible tasks

Key factors of workplace bullying are that the behaviour is generally:

Persistent
Unwanted
Subtle
Non-physical

The exercise of legitimate management functions, in a reasonable and fair manner, does not constitute bullying and this view of the Board of Management is endorsed by the INTO, and the various Management bodies.

WHAT IS WORKPLACE HARASSMENT
Harassment is any form of unwanted conduct related to any of the discriminatory grounds. It is conduct which has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity and creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for the person. The unwanted conduct may consist of acts, requests, spoken words, gestures or the production, display or circulation of written words, pictures or other material. (Employment Equality Act 2004)

The employment equality acts 1998 and 2004 prohibits discrimination on the following nine grounds: Gender (specific protection is provided for pregnant employees or in relation to maternity leave);

Marital Status. Family Status, Sexual orientation, Religion, Age, Disability, Race, Member of the Traveller Community

MAKING A COMPLAINT OF WORKPLACE BULLYING/ HARASSMENT

1. Inter-staff Relations
Any employee who feels he or she has been or is being bullied or harassed should ask the perpetrator to stop. Where this form of action is unsuccessful the employee may report the matter to any of the following school personnel – the Principal, the Deputy Principal, INTO staff representative or teacher/member of the Board of Management or Chairperson of the Board of Management.

Without prejudice to an individual’s right to take such advice or steps as they themselves may decide, the Board of Management will take seriously any allegations of workplace bullying or harassment.

Any complaint of harassment shall be fully and properly investigated by the Board of Management and if substantiated, will be regarded as grounds for disciplinary action up to and including dismissal.

An attempt will be made to resolve the matter informally if appropriate. If it is not possible to resolve the matter informally, a formal complaints procedure as agreed by the INTO, with IMPACT and other unions and with management bodies shall be applied. This procedure is outlined in the INTO Members Handbook, IMPACT website and the CPSMA Management Board Members Handbook. This and other procedures to deal with staff relation difficulties can be found in Appendix 1-3 of this policy.

No record of any complaint will be registered on an employees’ file unless a formal procedure as outlined in these documents is applied.

Supportive and effective procedures, in accordance with nationally agreed practice, are in place in this school. These procedures to address and investigate allegations will focus on the earliest possible resolution, will proceed as necessary from informal to formal stages and insofar as possible, confidentiality will be ensured at all times during the investigation for all parties involved. In seeking a resolution, due respect shall be had for the rights of the complainant and the alleged perpetrator.

2. Staff and All Other Adults Within The School Community

In reference to the Parental Involvement policy and the Communication Policy both school and the family strive to be mutually supportive and respectful of each other so that the child’s education can be effective. The school has procedures (outlined in Appendix 4) in the event of a complete breakdown in communication resulting in threatening behavior or an assault by an adult on a staff member.

Monitoring and Evaluation

The Board of Management will monitor the implementation of all aspects of the Policy and review and amend the Policy as required.

Review Procedure

The policy will be reviewed regularly in the light of experience. It will be reviewed by the full staff and Board of Management every five years. Any staff member, board member, parent, guardian or student who is unhappy with the content or the implementation of any school policy may request a review at any time and such a request will be dealt with as quickly as possible. Next review of this policy will occur before or during the year 2025.

Chairperson, Board of Management

Date: March 2021

APPENDIX 1 Procedure to address staff relations difficulties

This procedure places the emphasis on addressing staff relations difficulties in a consensus and voluntary type approach and it includes a mediation facility.

Stage 1 Informally address matters between the parties

It is open to an individual teacher/group of teachers/entire staff to raise the matter of internal working relations in the school, particularly, where staff relations difficulties exist. For the purpose of this procedure the teacher(s) who raises the matter shall be termed party A. Party A should raise the matter with the teacher(s) it considers to be the source of the difficulty or who is contributing to the difficulty and this may include the principal teacher, ie, for the purpose of this procedure, party B. The manner by which party A decides to raise matters, will to a large extent depend on the issues identiﬁed by the party, previous experience and the existing procedure in the school for raising matters. In general, the following steps should be taken:

Party A should identify the areas where staff relations difficulties exist or if applicable, where relations can be improved;
Party A should raise matters at the earliest opportunity directly with party B;
Party B should make every effort to respond in a constructive manner to the issues raised by Party A;
The onus is now on both parties to engage constructively to sort out matters and it would be expected that the parties would be prepared to reach solutions and if appropriate, move their position in order to resolve matters at the earliest opportunity;
Both parties should agree realistic time frames which should not be later than 20 school days by which time a framework for resolution of issues should be agreed;
The outcome of the discussions should be recorded by the parties in a mutually agreeable manner;
By agreement the 2O school day period may be extended and the parties should take speciﬁc note of the new time frames.

Please note that if resolution is not achieved and the principal teacher is one of the parties at stage 1, then, where a party wishes to continue, the procedure should, after completion of stage 1, move directly to stage 3 or stage 4.

Stage 2 Role of the principal teacher

Where it has not been possible to resolve matters informally and directly between the parties and where the principal teacher is not a party to the conﬂict, the principal should be consulted by both parties as follows:

The principal teacher should be briefed by each party on the discussions which have occurred at the informal stage;
As part of effective leadership, the principal teacher has a role in promoting positive working relations and accordingly should hear the parties and seek to mediate and resolve the staff relations difficulty;
The principal should act in a fair and impartial manner and may exercise judgement and make decisions which he/she considers necessary to resolve matters;
The onus is on both parties, facilitated by the principal teacher, to engage constructively to resolve matters and it is expected that the parties would be prepared to reach solutions and, if appropriate, move their position in order to resolve matters at the earliest opportunity;
Where the principal teacher deems it prudent and appropriate, he/she may raise the matter at a staff meeting and seek to initiate a framework through full staff dialogue, to resolve matters. In these circumstances, it is recommended, that where possible, a neutral member of staff or a member of staff acceptable to both parties, should be selected to chair the staff meeting;
The outcome of the discussions should be recorded by the parties including the principal teacher in a mutually agreeable manner,
20 school days are provided to resolve matters at stage 2 and the parties should note the time frames which should only be extended by agreement.

Please note that where resolution is not achieved at stages 1 or 2, it is open to the parties to move to stage 3 or to go directly to stage 4.

Stage 3 External intervention

Where resolution has not been achieved at either stage 1 or stage 2, the parties and/or the principal teacher may request the board of management to appoint a mediator, agreeable to the parties. Prior to entering a mediation process, each of the members of staff concerned, will be required to supply the following background information for the attention of the mediator only:

a written account of the issues involved;
a written account of the initiatives taken to date to resolve matters, detailing any progress made, together with a general outline of the sequence of dates.

Where the principal teacher has been involved at stage 2, he/she should also supply an account with a list of the outstanding issues and the resolutions sought by the parties; and a written and signed undertaking, to the effect, that he/she:

- will constructively participate in the mediation process;

- will be ﬂexible in order to achieve resolution; and

- will abide by and act on the recommendations of the mediator.

The mediator shall:

review all of the documentation;
arrange to meet with the parties;
decide on whether it is possible to achieve a framework for resolution in light of the attitudes of the parties; and where the mediator decides to proceed, he/she shall, following the mediation process, draft a conclusion.

The conclusion of the mediator shall solely state whether mediation has either achieved or failed to achieve a framework for resolution. The conclusion of the mediator shall be available to the parties and to the board of management.

In addition, if a framework for resolution is agreed between the parties, then a copy of same may be appended to the conclusion. As a rule, the mediator shall complete his/her work within 20 school days.

A joint INTO/management panel of mediators will be established for the purpose of facilitating independent mediation.

Please note that any expenses involved at this stage will be shared by the parties, ie INTO and the relevant management body, provided that prior sanction for same has been obtained from those parties.

Stage 4 Formally address matters with the board of management

Where it has not been possible to agree a framework for resolution at previous stages, the matter should be referred, by the parties, to the board of management for investigation. The referral should be in writing. In addition, the conclusion of the mediator may indicate that the matter should be referred to the board of management and in this regard, the mediator’s conclusion may itself constitute a referral. Once a board of management has received a written referral to investigate a staff relations difficulty, it should, generally, proceed as follows:

The board may enquire into the background of the difficulties including obtaining details on the sequence of initiatives taken at previous stages;
The board or the chairperson of the board may meet the teachers individually or collectively and may also request written submissions from the parties, having regard also to the principles of due process
The board may request the principal teacher to furnish a written submission;
The board may afford the parties an opportunity to present their case orally at a board meeting, in each other’s presence;
Following oral presentations the board of management may designate the chairperson to meet with the parties again, separately or jointly, if further clariﬁcation is required or to work towards resolution;
The board of management may convene a number of meetings in order to achieve resolution;
The board of management shall act in a fair and impartial manner in order to achieve resolution;
The board is entitled to reach conclusions and to request the parties to agree a framework for resolution in which the parties will fully and constructively participate;
Where the parties fail to voluntarily agree a framework for resolution, following a request by the board of management, the board itself is entitled to decide on an appropriate framework for resolution and may, if considered necessary, direct the parties to participate in same;
The board of management should complete its investigation within 20 school days of receipt of the written referral;
The steps taken at stage 4 should be recorded, reviewed and monitored and the record should be available to the parties.

APPENDIX 2 Procedure to address adult bullying and harassment

This procedure is speciﬁc to the matter of allegations of bullying, sexual harassment or other speciﬁc discriminatory harassment, which may occur in the workplace or otherwise in the course of employment.

Stage 1 Decide to address the matter

The party (party A) who considers that he/she is being bullied, sexually harassed or harassed on other speciﬁed discriminatory grounds, should decide to address the matter. However, in light of the potential effects of bullying or harassment on an individual, including loss of conﬁdence, extreme upset, anxiety or fear, party a may initially decide to seek INTO or other assistance, including Employee Assistance Scheme or other counselling, in order to consider the most appropriate application of the procedures, in the circumstances.

Party A should keep a record of the pattern of behaviour or instances where he/she considers that bullying/harassment has occurred. The record should contain details such as dates, times, persons present, details of what was said or what occurred.

Stage 2 Informally address the problem

The party who considers that he/she is being bullied, sexually harassed or harassed on other discriminatory grounds (party A), should request a meeting with the other party (B), in order to discuss matters. The following should apply:

Where necessary, the meeting may be facilitated by a third party, generally a teaching colleague;

Party A should clearly outline his/her difficulties and should clearly object to the bullying/harassment and request that it stop;
It is important that party A bear in mind, that the other member of staff may not be aware that his/her behaviour is causing difficulty;
Both parties should seek to resolve their differences and establish a pattern of interaction exclusive of any forms of bullying/harassment;
Party B may respond to party A at that meeting or if requested, should be given an opportunity to consider his/her response, in which case the meeting may be adjourned. Party B should respond in a constructive manner;
The resolution, as appropriate, may include any of the following, eg, a commitment to cease the particular behaviour, modify the behaviour, plan to eliminate situations where the parties would be in conﬂict or monitoring. Alternatively, it may emerge as a result of the discussions between the parties, that there may have been a degree of misunderstanding in relation to certain behaviours and the resolution may make provision for compromise or appropriate explanation or acknowledgement.

If there is no satisfactory indication of resolution between the parties, party A should refer the complaint to stage 3, ie formal procedures.

Stage 3 Principal teacher or chairperson of the board of management

Stage 3 provides a mechanism for the principal teacher to intervene and resolve the matter. However, if the principal teacher is one of the parties, the chairperson of the board of management, should then be involved, in an individual capacity, in order to achieve resolution. In circumstances where the chairperson may also be involved at stage 2, another member of the board, may be designated to intervene.

Party A should advise party B that he/she is proceeding with stage 3.
Party A should state his/her complaint in writing and request the principal teacher (or chairperson of the board of management, as the case may be) to investigate the matter.
The principal teacher (or chairperson of the board of management, as the case may be) should:

• obtain background details including details of what occurred at the previous stage;

• consider the pattern of behaviour and the timescale;

• hear the parties and seek to resolve the matter;

• act in a fair and impartial manner and deal with the matter sensitively having regard to the nature of the problem and the principles of due process

• exercise judgement and make decisions which he/she considers necessary to resolve matters.

The outcome of the discussions should be noted by the parties.
The matter should be dealt with conﬁdentially.

Where resolution has not been possible and particularly, where there is a likelihood of the offending behaviour continuing, either party or the principal teacher (or chairperson of the board of management as the case may be) should refer the matter to the board of management in accordance with stage 4 below.

Stage 4 Board of Management

It is open to any of the parties or the principal teacher (or chairperson of the board of management, as the case may be) to refer the matter to the board of management for investigation. The referral should be in writing and dated and should include a copy of the written complaint.

The board of management should consider the issues and investigate the matter:

The board may enquire into the background of the difficulties including obtaining details on the sequence of initiatives taken at previous stages;
The board or the chairperson of the board may meet teachers individually or collectively and may also request written submissions from the parties, having regard also to the principles of due process.
The board may request the principal teacher to furnish a written submission;
The board may afford the parties an opportunity to present their case orally at a board meeting, in each other’s presence;
Following oral presentations the board of management may designate the chairperson to meet with the parties again, separately or jointly, if further clariﬁcation is required or to work towards resolution;
The board of management may convene a number of meetings in order to achieve resolution;
The board of management shall act in a fair and impartial manner in order to achieve resolution and shall deal with the matter sensitively, having regard to the nature of the problem.
Having considered all matters, the board of management should reach a view on the matter not later than 20 school days after receipt of the written request/referral.

Where the board of management ﬁnds that bullying/harassment has not occurred, both parties should be informed accordingly. No action shall be taken against the complainant provided the allegation was made in good faith. If the complaint was brought maliciously, it should be treated as misconduct and appropriate action taken.

Where the board of management ﬁnds that bullying/harassment has occurred, the board should deal with the matter appropriately and effectively. This may include:

• the issuing of a clear warning that bullying/harassment is not acceptable in the school workplace and that it will not be tolerated;

• a demand that all forms of bullying/harassment cease and that acceptable patterns of interaction be established between the parties;

• an instruction to the offending party that he/she apologise/ express regret or give an assurance that the bullying/harassment behaviour will cease;

• seeking a commitment to attend counselling or the welfare service;

• more serious disciplinary sanctions as may be commensurate and appropriate, such as, oral warning written reprimand written warning ﬁnal written warning suspension dismissal

As part of any resolution, the board of management should monitor the situation and should put systems in place to ensure that it is kept informed that resolutions are being implemented. The board of management should request progress reports on this issue from the principal at subsequent BOM meetings

APPENDIX 3 Grievance Procedure

This procedure places the emphasis on processing speciﬁc grievances, which usually relate to breaches of school rules, policies, procedures or practices and it provides that an independent tribunal may be established, which is empowered to issue a decision that is ﬁnal and binding on all the parties. provide a mechanism for the resolution of a grievance which a teacher, including a principal teacher, has against:

the board of management in respect of the exercise of any of its responsibilities for the governance of the school; or
the chairperson of the board in an individual capacity; or
the principal teacher in respect of his/her duties and responsibilities for the organisation, conduct and day to day activities of the school.

Stage 1 The Principal

The aggrieved teacher shall give notice in writing to the principal that the grievance procedure is being invoked.
The teacher shall discuss the grievance with the principal teacher with a view to resolving it.
If the grievance is not resolved within ten school days, the teacher shall be entitled to invoke stage 2, within a further ten school days.

Stage 2 The Chairperson

The aggrieved teacher shall give notice in writing to the principal and chairperson of the board of management that stage 2 of the grievance procedure is being invoked.
The teacher shall discuss the grievance with the chairperson of the board with a view to resolving it.
The chairperson shall immediately take such steps as she/he considers appropriate to have the grievance resolved informally.
If the grievance is not resolved within ten school days the teacher shall be entitled to invoke stage 3, within a further ten school days.

Stage 3 The Board of Management

The aggrieved teacher shall give notice in writing to the chairperson of the board of management that stage 3 of the grievance procedure is being invoked.
The teacher shall make a written submission which shall include the details of the grievance(s) and the redress being sought. The submission shall be presented to the chairperson for consideration by the board of management.
The normal rules of due process shall apply to the exchange of documentation, and accordingly, the chairperson shall copy the submission to the person against whom the grievance is being taken.
Where the grievance involves the principal teacher, she/he shall be requested by the chairperson to prepare a written response to the submission. The written response shall address all of the points made in the aggrieved teachers’ submission and shall be furnished to the aggrieved teacher(s) within 10 school days of the date of the written submission. Similarly, where the grievance is against the chairperson of the board of management or the board itself, the aggrieved teacher shall be entitled to a written response from the chairperson or the board, as the case may be. Such response shall also be furnished within 10 school days.
The chairperson shall invite the aggrieved teacher to be in attendance at a hearing of the board, which shall be held within ten school days of the date of the written response. The hearing shall afford each party to the grievance an opportunity to hear at ﬁrst hand, what the other party has to say and also to question and/or respond to the other party;
In circumstances, where the grievance is against the principal teacher, he/she shall attend at the board hearing in an individual capacity and not as a member of the board of management. Similarly, where the grievance is against the chairperson of the board of management (in an individual capacity) he/she shall also attend at the board hearing in an individual capacity and an acting chairperson shall be appointed. Further, the principal teacher or the chairperson, as the case may be, shall withdraw from the board’s deliberations and decision making on the matter;
Where appropriate, the parties shall be entitled to bring witnesses. The same principles of due process apply to hearing witnesses.
The board shall try to resolve the grievance by conciliation and if the grievance is resolved the matter is concluded. If the board is unable to resolve the grievance by conciliation it shall make a decision on the matter, except as provided under paragraph 9 below.
In cases where the grievance is against the board itself, the board shall hear the grievance as outlined above, shall try to resolve the matter by conciliation, but failing resolution, the matter may proceed to stage 4 in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 11 below .
The chairperson shall convey the outcome in writing to the parties within 5 school days of the hearing speciﬁed at stage 5 / paragraph  above.
The teacher shall have the right to invoke stage 4 of the procedure:

if the board fails to give a hearing to the aggrieved teacher;
if the chairperson fails to convey the outcome of the hearing within the speciﬁed period; or
if the teacher is unwilling to accept the outcome of stage 3

Stage 4 An Independent Tribunal

The teacher who wishes to proceed with an appeal to stage 4 shall give notice of same, by letter, to the chairperson of the board of management, within ten school days of receiving the written outcome of stage 3 (or at the end of the period speciﬁed in stage 3 , if the board fails to arrange a hearing). The date of that letter shall be referred to as the “date of appeal” and the teacher may include, in the letter, any additional arguments he/she wishes to put forward;
On receipt of the letter of appeal, the chairperson of the board of management shall notify the patron (or a designated representative of the patron) and the General Secretary of the INTO (or a designated representative of the INTO) and invite these parties: to select an agreed independent person to act as chairperson of a tribunal; each to appoint a person who is not associated with the school to serve on the tribunal; to arrange a meeting of the tribunal within 15 school days of the date of appeal.
The chairperson of the board of management shall also furnish each member of the tribunal, prior to its ﬁrst meeting: with a report on the proceedings at each of the previous stages; and with: a copy of the aggrieved teacher’s letter of appeal; a copy of the aggrieved teacher’s submission; a copy of any written response; any other relevant documentation.
The tribunal shall arrange a hearing(s) for the parties and shall ensure that the normal rules of due process and fair procedures apply which include

that the parties shall be given reasonable notice of the hearing by the tribunal. When notifying parties of the date of the hearing(s), the tribunal should indicate to the parties concerned that in the event of failure to appear, without reasonable cause, the tribunal may proceed to decide the case if considered appropriate;
that each party shall be afforded an opportunity to access and respond to relevant documentation, including the letter of appeal;
that the parties shall have an opportunity to hear at ﬁrst hand, what each has to say and also to question or respond to the other party through the chairperson of the tribunal;
that witnesses may attend as appropriate;
that the tribunal itself, shall be entitled to question each party or seek further information;
that where appropriate, the tribunal shall afford each party an opportunity to provide further information, on the clear understanding, that the other party shall have an opportunity to access and respond to same; and
that if necessary, the tribunal shall agree to adjournments.

The tribunal shall be considered a domestic forum and accordingly, neither management nor the INTO intends that there would be legal representation at any hearings.
The tribunal shall be empowered to conciliate with a view to reaching a friendly settlement.
Failing such a settlement the tribunal shall determine the issue by unanimous or majority vote.
The tribunal’s decision shall be conveyed in writing by the chairperson of the tribunal to all the parties and shall be ﬁnal and binding. Please note that any expenses involved in stage 4 will be shared by the parties who nominate the tribunal provided that prior sanction for same has been obtained from INTO and the relevant management body

APPENDIX 4 Procedure to address aggression towards a staff member from an adult with the school community.

It is accepted that judgement will have to be exercised in each case. The procedures relate to situations in which staff members have been intimidated or threatened with physical violence as well as situations of physical assault.

The incident will be immediately reported to the principal teacher.
The details of the incident will be recorded in an Incident Book.
Where necessary immediate medical assistance should be sought.
The matter will be reported to the Gardaí, where appropriate. This report would normally be made by the teacher who was assaulted.

The Board of Management will be notified of the incident and where necessary an emergency meeting of the Board will take place.

The Board will notify its legal advisors of the assault. The Board’s insurance company will also be notified.

Where the assault is committed by a parent/guardian, the parent/guardian will be immediately instructed in writing not to make direct contact with the teacher or the school pending full consideration of the matter by the Board. Subsequently the Board will correspond with the parent/ guardian stating:

That the Board considers the assault unacceptable
What action the Board intends to take
Outlining what pre-conditions must be met before access to the school is restored.

Where an employee’s personal property is damaged in the course of an assault, compensation for its replacement value may be paid by the board of management under the extended School Protection Policy.

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