December 2018. However, it is concerned that school participation in the Survey remains voluntary, and that monitoring of student wellbeing is not mandatory and ongoing. 47. The current legislative and regulatory framework fails to provide enough protection for children and young people. There is a notable lack of any explicit statutory requirement upon schools to implement bullying prevention programmes, collect data on bullying, or monitor its effects. The 2017 update of the Education Act 1989, described as a “fundamental” update by the Government of the time, failed to include any reference to bullying and in the Commission’s view constituted a significant missed opportunity in this respect. 48. The recommendation of the Ombudsman that the National Administrative Guidelines should be amended to include a guideline that requires school boards of trustees to implement an effective anti-bullying programme has not been implemented.52 The Ministry opposed this recommendation stating it had come to be expected that all schools will have systems and processes in place to manage bullying.53 To date this expectation has not been realised. Recommendation 11 Take urgent measures, underpinned by legislation that require: a. The Ministry of Education to immediately invest in evidence-based, targeted bullying prevention programs in all schools. b. School boards of trustees to implement evidence-based, targeted bullying prevention programs to address and reduce bullying and violence in schools – including cyberbullying. These should be implemented as a standard component of their work safety and child protection policy obligations. c. Schools to systematically collect and report annually to the Education Review Office on the number of incidents of school bullying and violence, including disaggregated data on bullying directed at girls, SOGSC and disabled students, and complaint outcomes. 17