Minister Naughton welcomes publication of Inspectorate’s ‘Perspectives on Bullying Behaviour 2025’
- Published on: 30 April 2026
- Last updated on: 30 April 2026
Department Inspectorate publishes ‘Perspectives on Bullying Behaviour 2025’, presenting the views and experiences of almost 4,000 children and young people.
Minister for Education and Youth, Hildegarde Naughton has welcomed the publishing of ‘Perspectives on Bullying Behaviour 2025’ report by the Department of Education and Youth’s Inspectorate. The report shows that most students experience school as a safe and supportive environment, with the majority reporting that they are treated with kindness and respect by adults. But the report also shows that approximately 15.5% of students reported experiencing bullying in the previous twelve months; higher rates were noted among students who did not disclose their gender or who identified as “other”. These figures indicate that this sense of safety is not experienced equally by all students and help to identify where further supports would be needed.
Welcoming the report, Minister Naughton said:
“It is deeply important that we listen carefully to what children and young people are telling us about bullying behaviour. This report shines a light on their day‑to‑day experiences: the many positive examples of kindness and inclusion in our schools, but also the very real harm that bullying behaviour can cause when it is left unchallenged. I want to commend the students who took part in this survey and focus groups, and the school leaders and staff who support them. Their insights will directly inform how we continue to implement Cineáltas, our national action plan on bullying behaviour, so that every child and young person can feel safe, included and that they belong in school.”
The findings highlight that bullying behaviour is most commonly social and verbal in nature, often taking the form of exclusion, name‑calling and online behaviours such as the sharing of demeaning images or videos, rather than overt physical aggression. Students in focus groups spoke about the pressures of peer judgement, the impact of being left out of group chats or social events, and the ways in which online platforms can intensify conflicts and make harmful behaviour more visible. Students also described positive experiences, including meaningful involvement in peer-led initiatives to address bullying behaviour, as well as whole-school approaches to promoting kindness that were perceived as genuine and impactful rather than superficial. Many students spoke positively about their interactions with teachers, highlighting small but meaningful gestures such as being greeted warmly at the start of the day. They also highlighted the importance of extracurricular activities, particularly as spaces for participation and connection around shared interests.
Publishing the report, Chief Inspector Yvonne Keating said:
“Children and young people learn best when they feel safe, respected and that they truly belong. This report provides powerful evidence that bullying behaviour, particularly in its social, relational and online forms, continues to shape the everyday experiences of too many students, even where overall prevalence may appear moderate in international terms. At the same time, it showcases the thoughtful and committed work of schools that are building cultures of kindness, listening carefully to students’ voices and responding promptly and effectively when bullying behaviour occurs. The Inspectorate will continue to support schools to use these findings, including insights from the report’s statistical analysis, to strengthen whole‑education approaches to prevention, early intervention, oversight and student participation.”
The report concludes with a series of recommendations to support the continued implementation of Cineáltas at system and school level focusing on the following areas:
- Understanding bullying behaviour through a relational lens
- Addressing social exclusion in peer relationships
- Understanding the experiences of marginalised student groups
- Recognising the role of status and peer dynamics in bullying incidents
- Supervision and bullying across the school day
- Building students’ confidence in adult responses to bullying
- Providing confidential and accessible ways for students to report bullying
- Strengthening the impact of school-based wellbeing programmes
- Strengthening student participation in bullying prevention
- Understanding bullying across online and offline contexts
The full report, Perspectives on Bullying Behaviour 2025, is available on the Department of Education and Youth Inspectorate publications webpage at: Inspectorate publications
Further information
- Cineáltas, meaning kindness, is Ireland’s national framework for preventing and addressing bullying behaviour in schools. It sets out a whole-system approach to promoting respect, inclusion and belonging across schools in Ireland.
- Launched in December 2022, the Cineáltas Action Plan on Bullying outlines actions to prevent and address bullying behaviour in all its forms, including cyberbullying, racist bullying, gender-identity bullying and sexual harassment. The action plan was followed by a five-year implementation plan (2023 – 2027). This implementation plan outlined how these actions would be delivered in practice.
- Under Action 1.11, the Department of Education and Youth’s Inspectorate is required to publish an annual report reflecting the views of children and young people on how schools work to prevent and address bullying behaviour. Perspectives on Bullying Behaviour (2025) is the third report in this series.
- This report presents the findings from a national online survey of children and young people which was conducted during Anti-Bullying Week 2025. The survey findings are complemented by themes drawn from focus group discussions with students. The report provides a broad, system-level overview of patterns and trends in bullying behaviour and school culture. It does not evaluate the work of individual schools.
- Perspectives on Bullying Behaviour (2025) explores eight key themes that emerged from the survey responses, these themes include:
- Prevalence of bullying in school settings
- Students’ perceptions of safety and sense of belonging
- Forms and characteristics of bullying behaviour
- Contexts and settings in which bullying occurs
- Students’ understanding of bullying and their response strategies
- Factors influencing the non-reporting of bullying behaviour
- Influence of adult response and school procedures
- Student participation in bullying prevention
- The report shows that overall many students feel safe, respected and supported at school, but these positive experiences are not shared equally. Students’ sense of belonging, safety and wellbeing varies across groups and is strongly shaped by peer hierarchies, perceived popularity, home language and gender identity, with students who identify as ‘other’ gender and those who do not always speak English or Irish at home reporting higher rates of bullying and lower feelings of safety and happiness.
- Relational bullying (exclusion, teasing, social judgement) occurs more frequently than physical aggression and is also experienced unevenly among students.
- Students’ decisions about whether to report bullying are complex and influenced by fears of damaging friendships, escalation, or negative labelling, especially among older students.
- The report also underlines the critical role of adults: students value responses that are listening‑focused, empathetic, balanced (neither minimal nor overly punitive), and clearly communicated, supported by accessible and confidential reporting systems.