The Government will draw up an integrated plan to improve safety in schools, setting out clear responsibilities for all those involved and providing for concrete preventive measures, rapid response mechanisms and firm sanctions for acts of violence, Prime Minister Luca Niculescu said on Thursday.

He attended a meeting of the Working Group on the Prevention of and Fight Against Violence in Schools, established at Government level with the participation of representatives of organisations in the education sector, at Victoria Governmental Palace.

'Children's safety in schools is a Government priority and has received particular attention ever since we took office. Around this discussion table this morning are representatives of public institutions, non-governmental organisations, education trade unions, Parliament, parents, pupils, as well as representatives of schools who have first-hand knowledge of the realities within the system. It is important to make the most of this experience and listen to everyone's perspective. I would like to thank the Minister and the other ministers for swiftly launching the consultation process with social partners and relevant organisations. Today we are continuing this dialogue in a broader setting because school safety cannot be addressed from a single perspective,' Niculescu said.

He brought to mind that a closing conference for the project entitled 'Strengthening the Response to Violence Against Children through Better-Informed Policies and Enhanced Institutional Capacity' was held at Victoria Palace on Monday. He highlighted the importance of the initiative carried out by the Ministry of Labour, Family, Youth and Social Solidarity, with the support of UNICEF and the European Commission, which contributes to a better understanding of violence against children and has highlighted the need for better-grounded public policies.

'Today we are continuing the discussion in order to adopt the most effective solutions to address this concern, focusing on a place that is essential in children's lives: school. (...) We want to discuss practical measures that can improve safety in the school environment. Recent unfortunate incidents have shown us once again that we cannot treat violence in schools as an isolated problem. It is not enough to intervene only when a serious incident occurs. We must prevent it. We must identify risk situations at an early stage and build mechanisms that ensure every child feels safe, respected and heard,' the Prime Minister said.

According to him, the authorities have already approved measures and courses of action in several areas, including violence prevention, early identification of risky behaviour, psychological support and counselling, intervention in difficult situations and stronger cooperation between schools, families and the institutions responsible. However, more needs to be done.

'We are also discussing other solutions concerning the provision of security at educational establishments, the more active involvement of social services specialists and local police in identifying risks and intervening swiftly, if necessary. It is important to expand this set of measures and, to do so, we need to discuss what is actually happening in schools, the difficulties teachers face, parents' expectations and what you, the pupils, believe needs to change. The proposals you put forward today are very important to the Romanian Government. (...) We need the experience of those who work in schools every day, the perspective of parents, the voices of pupils and the expertise of organisations that have developed programmes and interventions in this area,' Niculescu explained.

He also highlighted the importance of public policies aimed at combating extremism.

'We are also looking at specific situations that go beyond the forms of violence we are all familiar with and contain the seeds of radicalisation, which can lead to extreme forms of violence. This morning, the Romanian Government published for public consultation the national strategy for the prevention of and fight against violent extremism, through which we aim to establish a sustainable protection framework. We will focus on prevention, and our efforts will begin with strengthening institutional capacities for action and response, including a better understanding of the factors and processes underlying this phenomenon,' the Prime Minister said.

Luca Niculescu also said that the Government was open to dialogue and encouraged constructive proposals and practical measures to be put into action.

'We will draw up an integrated plan to improve safety in schools, setting out clear responsibilities for all those involved and providing for concrete preventive measures, rapid response mechanisms and firm sanctions for acts of violence. Romania's children must be and must feel safe,' he added.

Among those also attending the meeting were Education Minister Sorin Costreie, Labour Minister Florin Manole and Minister Delegate for Pre-University Education Sorin Ionescu. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Daniel Florea; EN - writing by: Adina Panaitescu)