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My child is being bullied

What to do if you think your child is being bullied.

On this page

Take the bullying incident seriously and know that your child’s school will too.

Stay calm and positive

It can be upsetting when your child is being bullied. Focus on identifying a solution with your child. A confident, positive and resilient appearance can stop bullying from continuing. It might be helpful to draw on your own networks to get support for yourself while you are helping your child.

Talk with the school

You do not need to ask your child’s permission to talk to the school. Understandably, children who are being bullied are often fearful and worry that any action will worsen the problem. The solution is to make a parental decision to talk to the school.

A consistent and co-operative approach by both the home and school is important. You can always let your child know later what actions you have taken. Let the school take responsibility for helping students who are bullying to change their ways.

Keep your child safe

You should contact the school immediately if your child’s safety is at risk.

Talk with your child

Encourage your child to talk about what happened. If they want to try to deal with the bullying themselves, discuss these strategies and set a short period of time to see if they can resolve the situation. Tell your child that reporting the bullying is okay. Assure your child that it is not their fault.

Encourage your child to:

Practise some strategies at home with your child to help them to:

Talk about what we know doesn’t work with bullying:

Talk to your child about the tips and advice offered on the student section of this website.

Give them the Kids Helpline telephone number 1800 551 800 to use if they ask to talk to someone other than the school, or you don’t feel able to support them.

Say no to fighting

Do not advise your child to fight with the other child. Fighting (as distinct from defending themselves from a physical attack) with the other child can escalate the situation and your child may be reprimanded for their part in a fight.

Seek help for your child

Seek help for your child to recover from and understand the bullying incidents and give them the chance to improve their social skills. A child who has been bullied can be at greater risk than others of being bullied again (even when the bullying has been dealt with). Knowing how to deal with bullying and difficult people not just at school but throughout life in social situations and at work is a basic life survival skill.

My child is being racially bullied

Our schools are committed to ensuring students from all backgrounds feel safe and connected at school and are able to achieve their best.

Racist bullying

Racist bullying occurs when someone is put-down, teased, intimidated or shamed because of their:

Racist bullying can be anything from casual but hurtful remarks, to deliberate physical and verbal attacks.

Unfortunately, racist bullying continues to occur in our school communities.

A 2014 Australian study found that:

Impacts

Racist bullying can impact the:

At an individual level, racist bullying can have long-term negative effects on:

Preventing racist bullying

For all students to feel connected, protected and respected, schools need to:

There are a range of things a school can do prevent bullying. These include:

For more information, see these fact sheets:

There is more information and resources about bullying on Bully Stoppers.

For more information about how upstanders can help prevent bullying, see I have your back.

If you want more information about what to do if your child is experiencing bullying, this page may be helpful: Bullying. No Way! – How parents and carers can respond(opens in a new window).

More information

For more information, see:

Education & training

Updated 26 March 2026

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