asked Her Majesty’s Government:

What consideration they have given to the implications of Mencap's research finding that eight out of 10 pupils with learning difficulties are bullied and six out of 10 physically hurt; and what action they will take. [HL210]

We have carefully considered the research and will be responding in due course to the detailed recommendations in the report. The department’s guidance Safe to Learn: Embedding Anti-bullying Work in Schools provides advice to schools on tackling bullying and flags up the bullying of children with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities as an area that schools need to consider. We are currently working with the Council for Disabled Children to develop more specific guidance to help teachers to prevent and tackle the bullying of children with SEN and disabilities and will publish this next spring.

We have also asked the Anti-Bullying Alliance and National Strategies, which work with local authorities and schools to embed effective anti-bullying practice on the ground, to ensure that schools have robust systems in place for tackling this problem.