Daily roundup 17 November: Cyberbullying, Somerset DCS, and Rotherham sackings

Chair of the education select committee Graham Stuart has criticised schools for failing to teach children about the dangers of cyberbullying. The BBC reports that Stuart, who is leading an inquiry into online abuse, has said schools are failing to provide pupils with the appropriate guidance needed to stay safe online.


A new interim director of children’s services (DCS) has been appointed at Somerset County Council. The Shepton Mallet Journal reports that Rose Collinson, previously an interim DCS in Walsall, will take over from Peter Lewis who left the authority under controversial circumstances last month. Collinson's role is for a short period until a permanent appointment is made early in the new year.


Six people involved in children’s services in Rotherham were sacked and a further four resigned for putting children at risk of harm in the past year, a report has revealed. The Sheffield Star reports that figures compiled by Rotherham’s Local Safeguarding Children Board show there were a total of 63 incidents in 2013/14 that were investigated because they could “place children at risk of harm from professionals, volunteers or foster carers”.


A teacher has banned the term “banter” from his classroom, saying that the term is being used to legitimise bullying. Mike Stuchbery, an English teacher at Lynn Grove High School in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, said that boys often tried to shrug off behaviour such as stealing another pupil’s pencil case, name calling or thumping someone on the back as "just banter". Despite its definition as light-hearted joking or gentle ribbing, it has developed a wider meaning among young people, Stuchbery told the Times.


A child was so malnourished he was only the size of a two-year-old when teachers at his primary school raised the alarm. A teaching assistant spotted gouges, burns and scratches on the boy's body when he changed for PE and police were called in. The parents admitted child neglect at Manchester Crown Court, and after a period in care the boy has returned home and will remain under the supervision of the Family Court, reports the Express.


Northamptonshire County Council is set to host a series of public meetings to discuss plans to reduce the opening hours of some of its children’s centres. ITV News reports that the authority wants to scale back services from April 2015.


Youth charity YouthNet has launched a new mobile app designed to motivate young people to achieve their career goals. Motimator provides expert advice and encourages young people to stay motivated through the job-hunting process.