How are schools in Vantaa tackling bullying?
In Vantaa's schools, bullying is always dealt with when adults become aware of it. Pupils and parents are encouraged to report bullying as soon as possible.
Every school, educational institution and daycare centre in Vantaa has a bullying investigation and intervention team. It helps to resolve, record and describe the situation. The teams include experts from education and learning and student welfare services. Carers are also involved in the process.
A designated support adult is always assigned to the student who is being bullied. This person acts as a trusted adult from whom the child or young person receives specific support and help.
Vantaa is the first municipality to have a specialised anti-bullying expert. This person is responsible for supporting education and learning services in preventing and tackling bullying. She takes on the task of dealing with prolonged bullying and defuses situations through multidisciplinary cooperation.
Why is bullying not always dealt with?
For example, social media enables bullying to happen without adults seeing it. Moreover, not all children and young people dare to report bullying because they fear it will make it worse.
We always hope that children and young people will come forward to tell about bullying.
In Vantaa, pupils in grades 3-9 can also report bullying on Someturva in Finnish, Swedish and English. Through Someturva, you can report bullying on social media and ask for help in dealing with the situation. The Annie app is used for the same purpose at Vocational College Varia.
Why does the City of Vantaa not comment on the bullying that emerged in the Viertola case?
As the police investigation is ongoing, the city cannot comment on the matter so as not to interfere with the investigation. The City does not downplay or deny bullying, but is acting on the instructions of the police.
Vantaa can comment on bullying issues in general after the police investigation has been concluded.
What are Vantaaʼs schools, kindergartens and colleges doing to prevent bullying?
In August 2022, Vantaa has introduced a programme of measures to tackle and prevent bullying. The action plan applies to every daycare centre, school and educational institution in Vantaa.
As of 2023, a specialised anti-bullying expert has been working in Vantaa. She supports schools in their anti-bullying work and helps in dealing with the most demanding cases.
Together with youth services and other partners, schools strengthen pupilsʼ community well-being, for example through group work. Groups are used for exercises and play in a relaxed environment.
All schools, colleges and daycare centres have an annual well-being calendar and plan in place. These are used to teach and reinforce emotional and social skills.
In classrooms, common rules are established between children, young people and adults. Schools, colleges and nurseries have rules of order, which are reviewed together at the beginning of the school year.
The curriculum for Finnish-speaking seventh-graders and Swedish-speaking eighth-graders has been permanently extended to include lessons on emotions and interaction skills. A similar addition to the curriculum is also in the pipeline for Finnish-speaking eighth graders and Swedish-speaking seventh graders.
Vantaa schools and day-care centres are also involved in ProVaka and ProKoulu. This means teaching respectful behaviour and community spirit through positive feedback.
There are 11 school coaches working in Vantaa schools. The aim of the school coaches is to strengthen a collaborative, safe and healthy school culture and to increase pupilsʼ inclusion, motivation and engagement in school.
The schools also have support pupils, mentors and tutors. They are older pupils who younger pupils can come and talk to if they need help.
Where can children and young people get help to deal with online bullying?
In Vantaa, the Someturva service in Finnish, Swedish and English is available for pupils in grades 3-9. Someturva is a service to tackle bullying and harassment online. The service can be contacted anonymously.
The Someturva service provides educational material for lessons. Pupils are guided in using the service at school. There are also instructions on the Wilma platform for pupils and guardians on how to access the service.
The Vocational College Varita uses the Annie app for the same purpose.
Can class size be the cause of bullying?
In Vantaa, the average number of pupils per teacher is 20.5. According to statistics from the Finnish National Board of Education, the average class size in primary school classes in Finland in 2019 was 19.6 pupils.
In addition to teachers, all other employees of schools, daycare centres and educational institutions monitor situations at school during the day and intervene in cases of bullying if necessary.
The role of school coaches is to spot situations that teachers may not have time to see while they are teaching.
School coaches also aim to foster a collaborative, safe and healthy school culture, and to increase pupilsʼ involvement, motivation and engagement in school. School coaches aim to be as flexible and low-threshold as possible in reaching pupils wherever children and young people go.
The results of the school health survey show that many pupils experience bullying. What is being done to prevent this?
During the spring of 2024, bullying prevention support has been provided in particular to schools where the school health survey results for bullying were below the Vantaa average. The Viertola school is not one of those schools.
During the autumn semester 2023, regional webinars were organised for carers to discuss the results of the school health survey and the safety situation in the area from the perspective of the child, the young person and the carer. One of the topics was bullying prevention and intervention.
The school-specific results of the school health surveys have been discussed with the school student support teams. Schools have chosen their own areas for improvement. The implementation of the targets will be monitored during spring 2024.
How is school safety taken care of in Vantaa?
The city's security department and educational institutions and early childhood education units work closely together to ensure safety. The City of Vantaa has a joint police coordinator post with the police department of Itä-Uusimaa.
Schools and educational institutions have comprehensive instructions on how to prepare for and respond to crises. All schools have a safety plan in place, as well as the Vantaa anti-bullying programme. The schools regularly practise how to deal with and protect themselves in various threat and danger situations. Some schools also have emergency buttons.
Risks are identified in advance. Various alarm systems, such as fire alarms and security cameras, are in place to ensure the safety of schools.
How is student wellbeing monitored in schools?
The Vantaa and Kerava Welfare Region is responsible for student welfare in Vantaa schools. Specialists work in schools and educational institutions and meet pupils every day wherever they go.
We monitor the implementation of measures to support wellbeing through a school health survey and other regular surveys. The school health survey has also been used to keep in touch with the children's guardians.
This spring, the city's education and learning department has been helping to combat bullying, particularly in schools that received the lowest ratings in the 2023 school health survey on preventing bullying.
Other surveys include those answered through the School Day wellbeing app, the Nice School survey and schools' and collegesʼ own surveys. The responses are used to develop measures to tackle bullying.
School coaches working in Vantaa are close to young people every day. They talk to young people, help with worries and everyday issues and highlight the needs of children and young people. The presence of school coaches also provides information about the situation of children and young people and helps to reduce bullying in schools.
How are children and young people in need of support helped?
The majority of children and young people are well, but a small number are unwell. Their situation is more severe than before.
We work very closely with the wellbeing services county to ensure the well-being of children and young people. The wellbeing services county delivers statutory social and health services.
It also provides pupil welfare services in schools. Specialists work in schools, educational institutions and early childhood education and care centres, where they meet children and young people on a daily basis.
If necessary, welfare specialists also help families at home or at family counselling centres. Self-care services are also available, such as light online counselling services. Questions and concerns are also answered in the counselling and guidance services. Child protection is the last response, where necessary.
There are also many third sector providers in the wellbeing area, offering multidisciplinary support. The wellbeing of children and young people is the responsibility of all actors. Most importantly, as a society, we need to involve all children in community activities. This is the best form of preventive support.
How is child and adolescent distress being tackled in Vantaa?
Any action to promote the wellbeing of children and young people is extremely important. In Vantaa, a wide range of preventive work has been done to promote the wellbeing of children and young people in schools, educational institutions, early childhood education and youth services.
The aim is that young people have the opportunity to join in community activities and to feel well as part of the community. Young people can meet each other in places such as hobbies and youth facilities, where there are safe adults nearby. The Vantaa Outreach Youth Work visits Vantaa to talk to young people, monitor their situation and respond to their concerns and questions.
The needs of children and young people vary somewhat from one area to another in Vantaa. We are currently taking steps to ensure that all areas have the opportunity to experience a sense of community. We will continue to strengthen regional cooperation between different actors.
