The council says there may need to be alternative approaches

Teachers in Bristol had been advised not to "punish or humiliate" bullies in certain cases.

The policy attracted fierce criticism from Tony Blair who said bullies should be punished, and "made to understand the harm they have been doing."

A council spokeswoman denied education officials had performed a U-turn.

'Profoundly disagree'

Tony Blair had said it was an "extraordinary thing" for the Liberal Democrat-run council to advocate.

"I profoundly disagree with the decision that council has taken: bullying should be punished; children who bully must be made to understand the harm they have been doing," he told the House of Commons in November.

A Bristol City Council spokesman said it was "reviewing" its 'no blame' bullying policy after it was dropped from DfES guidelines in December but denied the education officials had performed a U-turn

The "no blame" approach, which was widely adopted in schools in the late 1990s, originated in Bristol as an alternative to directly punishing bullies.

It encouraged the bully to discuss with their classmates the root cause of their behaviour and to find a way forward with the help of a teacher.

That policy was attacked by Labour MP Dan Morris when it was again advocated in a guidance booklet, launched by the council during anti-bullying week in November.

The Wansdyke MP described it as "dangerous" and "reckless" and said it did nothing to get the bullies to change their behaviour.

Schools Minister Jacqui Smith joined in the criticism of the approach in December and announced a review to clarify the department's guidelines.

Cllr Jos Clark, executive member for children's services at Bristol City Council, said "no blame" had only ever been one of several approaches the city council took to bullying.

"We are reviewing our anti-bullying guidance to ensure it is as comprehensive and useful as possible to schools.