In my paper I will outline the findings of a survey of teachers on homophobic bullying in Irish second-level schools that was conducted in 2004. I will show that the majority of teachers are aware of this type of bullying and that many of them find it more difficult to deal with than other types of bullying. The findings of this study will also show that as a professional group Irish teachers in second-level schools are fearful of addressing a sensitive topic like sexual orientation in the classroom and that many of them will 'play it safe' when it comes to homophobia and related forms of bullying.Over half of the teachers in this study said that they were aware of gay or lesbian pupils in their schools. However, they sited their own inexperience in dealing with the issue, lack of official policy and guidelines, fear of parents and colleagues disapproval, and disapproval from school managers and patrons/trustees as hindering improvements in addressing the issue. The response of teachers towards homophobic bullying in Irish second-level schools cannot be considered without reference to the overarching presence of the Catholic Church as patron/trustee of most Irish schools because the Catholic Church has very specific teachings against homosexuality. The findings of the study reflect an unwillingness or even fear on the part of the teachers to address this issue in schools. This is most clearly seen in the high number of schools that do not have a Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) policy or in those that do have an RSE policy but who don't include any reference to gay, lesbian or bi-sexual issues. The consequences for pupils who are gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or heterosexual is that they are left to form their own ideas about sexual orientation in a vacuum and this leads to the production of stereotypes. Furthermore, many young people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or who are perceived to be this way experience bullying and are hindered in their participation at school. If Irish schools are to truly be inclusive of all children and to protect them from bullying and discrimination than the teachers in Irish second-level schools will have to start to take ownership of this problem and school managers will have to allow for the development of a more inclusive approach to relationships and sexuality education.