The Willows Law Tier System

Tier 1: Official Warning & Behaviour Rehabilitation Plan

Tier 1 gives children a chance to change—without sacrificing the safety or dignity of their victims. A single verified incident of bullying triggers an official warning, recorded in a national database, with no resets or loopholes. An Individual Behaviour Rehabilitation Plan is created within 48 hours, documenting the harm caused, outlining personal development goals, and mandating attendance at anti-bullying education. These include empathy training, conflict resolution, accountability, and monitored peer inclusion tasks (never with the victim). All actions are reviewed after 6 weeks. Non-attendance or worsening behaviour leads to automatic Tier 2 escalation. Schools are legally barred from “handling it informally” to protect statistics, and both online and offline bullying are fully covered. This tier intervenes early, builds accountability, and wraps a safety net around both victim and perpetrator—before harm escalates

Tier 2 – Escalated Action for Repeat Offenders

If bullying continues after Tier 1, Tier 2 is triggered automatically. At this stage, the child is considered a risk to others and must attend mandatory counselling, a youth justice diversion programme, and weekly behavioural reviews. Their case is logged with police, social services are alerted, and all evidence (like CCTV, digital messages, and victim reports) is reviewed by a safeguarding team. If they fail to comply, they’re escalated to Tier 3. No school can delay or downgrade this process, and refusal to engage leads to further intervention. Tier 2 makes it clear: bullying is no longer a warning—it’s a line crossed

Tier 3: Criminal Consequences for Bullying-Linked Harm

Tier 3 is triggered when repeated bullying continues despite prior intervention, or when a victim dies by suicide, attempts suicide, or is hospitalised due to prolonged bullying—and credible evidence links that harm to specific individuals. At this stage, bullying is no longer “behavioural”—it is criminal. The law must treat it as avoidable psychological manslaughter. Once a child reaches the age of criminal responsibility (10+), they can face formal youth cautions or charges including harassment, coercive control, or aiding suicide. Mandatory actions include a multi-agency investigation, legal consequences, family welfare checks, permanent school record flags, and rights for the victim’s family to access justice. No more internal handling. No more hiding behind excuses. This tier sends a clear message: bullying that destroys lives will face the full weight of the law