The government’s new strategy to prevent and handle violence in schools was launched on Monday, providing students, parents and teachers with the necessary tools to do so.

In a televised message, President Nikos Christodoulides said “our aim is to give our children the school they deserve,” adding that “by investing in our children, we are investing in the future of our society.”

He said the strategy included enhancing and strengthening teachers to address school violence challenges.

Students would be provided with specific tools to develop social skills and empathy and participate in preventing and addressing violence in schools.

Parents too would be supported so that they could take on an active role and participate in the prevention of and clamp down on violence.

“Our strategy is backed up by a comprehensive action plan that makes sure that every intervention will have clear goals, results and timeframes,” the president said.

The strategy, Christodoulides said, was the result of dialogue and cooperation between students, parents, teachers and organisations and services, who “joined forces through an inclusive and holistic approach, with the sole aim of securing that every child in our country grows, learns and develops in a school that is safe, inclusive and full of opportunities.”

He concluded by calling for a joint effort “for a school where violence has no place.”