22 September 2017

Catholic Education Melbourne shares Nakia’s anguish at the story of racist bullying recounted in The Age today.

The care, safety and wellbeing of children and young people is a central and fundamental responsibility of Catholic education.

Bullying in any form – let alone racist bullying – is unacceptable behaviour and has no place in a Catholic school.

We believe that all individuals deserve inherent human dignity as beings created in God’s image and Catholic schools across Victoria routinely implement extensive programs designed to protect all members of their communities against bullying, regardless of race, sexual orientation or any other factor.

Given this, I am disappointed The Age did not see fit to approach Catholic Education Melbourne for comment on the story.

The annual Household, Income and Labour Dynamics Australia survey suggests the prevalence of bullying (15 per cent) is relatively low in Catholic secondary schools. This supports internal data indicating a decline in bullying and provides positive reinforcement of the many Catholic school wellbeing programs aimed at creating zero-bullying environments.

Catholic schools across Victoria act immediately on incidents when they are reported to their school leaders and safety management plans are established to ensure all children are supported.

We encourage parents to discuss with principals any issues at all regarding their children’s wellbeing and education and our schools offer counselling for children and their families.

We hope Nakia’s story is the exception, not the rule, for any student, let alone a student from an Indigenous background.