School leaders are now required to report incidents of bullying to the police and child protection services.

Failure to report such incidents can lead to administrative penalties, as stated by educational ombudswoman Nadia Leshchik.

She explained that school directors must address oral or written reports concerning violence or mistreatment of children. The law sets a one-day deadline for addressing such complaints.

If the director identifies signs of bullying, they must promptly inform the child's parents or guardians and also submit a written report to the police and child services.

Nadia Leshchik emphasized that timely reporting is a crucial step in holding offenders and their parents (if the victims are students) accountable. Following such a report, police can initiate an investigation, and the court will determine if the child was indeed bullied.

“Not every report (from school leaders) may specifically refer to bullying; sometimes it could be a one-time act of violence, but it cannot be ignored – it's also mistreatment, and the police will decide whether there are grounds for opening a criminal case or for drafting an administrative offense report.

The police have the authority to classify child mistreatment at the time of receiving such reports, not the school leader,” explained the educational ombudswoman.

She added that directors or committees cannot make determinations about whether bullying actually took place but can identify signs of mistreatment to include in their report to the police and decide on further actions within the educational institution.

If a school director fails to report to the police, they may face administrative penalties under part 5 of article 173-4 of the Code of Administrative Offenses. In this case, the director may be subject to a fine (ranging from 425 to 850 hryvnias) or corrective labor for up to one month with a deduction of up to 20% of their salary.

Judicial practice shows that courts most often impose fines on violators.

Reports to the office of the educational ombudswoman indicate that some leaders do not notify law enforcement due to fears of harming the institution's reputation or that the situation may become public.

Additionally, directors mistakenly believe that reports to the police should only be made after a bullying incident is reviewed by a special committee.

“However, silence on such matters does not resolve the problem; it only exacerbates the issue and leads to negative consequences for all participants in the educational process, especially for the school leaders,” believes Nadia Leshchik.

Previously, the Ministry of Education and Science established a mechanism for quickly reporting bullying in schools. Students or their parents can fill out a brief questionnaire and submit an electronic complaint.