Reported bullying cases in schools reached 627 in 2025, the highest annual figure in the statistics presented to Parliament, while reported cyberbullying cases stood at 37, according to figures provided by Education Minister Byron Camilleri.

The figures were tabled in response to parliamentary questions by Nationalist Party MP Romilda Zarb, who asked for annual statistics on reported bullying and cyberbullying cases in schools.

The number of reported bullying cases has generally increased over the period covered by the data, rising from 223 in 2012 to 627 in 2025.

Reported cases climbed steadily from 223 in 2012 to 390 in 2016, before reaching 566 in 2018. The figure fell to 527 in 2019 and 247 in 2020, before rising again to 366 in 2021 and 501 in 2022.

There were 499 reported cases in 2023 and 531 in 2024, followed by the peak of 627 in 2025.

Camilleri said reported cases could be submitted directly to the police or referred by schools to the relevant authorities. Since 2022, he said, reports made to schools but not requiring referral to state services have been handled by the schools’ secretariat.

The statistics also show that reported cyberbullying cases totalled 37 in 2025, matching the figure recorded in 2020.

Cyberbullying reports stood at 30 in 2021, fell to 16 in 2022 and rose to 25 in 2023. There were 23 reported cases in 2024 before the number increased to 37 in 2025.

Camilleri noted that cyberbullying cases were a different category from other bullying cases and were not necessarily cyberbullying when reported by independent schools.