Bullying is an issue that damages pupil performance, blights school life and can ruin young lives. Everyone takes bullying seriously, because we all know that so much that is positive about school can be destroyed when it carries on unreported and vulnerable pupils fear to come to school. All studies of bullying suggest that the majority of incidents go unreported and that’s why it is so difficult to assess the real level of bullying in any school and the suffering that it is causing. What is clear, is that schools that develop a strong culture of zero tolerance to bullying and a willingness among pupils to report and refer incidents, are the most successful in minimising the negative impact bullying has on school life.

All studies of bullying suggest that the majority of incidents go unreported and that’s why it is so difficult to assess the real level of bullying in any school and the suffering that it is causing. What is clear, is that schools that develop a strong culture of zero tolerance to bullying and a willingness among pupils to report and refer incidents, are the most successful in minimising the negative impact bullying has on school life.

Bullying is not a normal part of growing up. It is the responsibility of every school governing body and Head Teacher to safeguard and promote the welfare of students. But this can be incredibly difficult when so much bullying happens out of school or by way of an ever-changing array of digital media and social networking tools. The only effective way to implement a zero tolerance policy is to engage pupils in providing their own peer support and reporting network and making it that much easier for bullied students to alert the school to any victimisation they may be experiencing.

What do we do?

We have been providing an award winning programme of anti-bullying work in schools for the past 4 years. In 2008 and again in 2010 we were awarded the Princess Diana Memorial Award for outstanding work within schools for our anti-bullying programme. Our programme can be delivered in both secondary and primary schools and is especially effective at reducing the risks of bullying associated with the transition from junior school to high school. Whether championing positive change in an individual school, or in a pyramid of schools, our Zero Zone programme is guaranteed to make a big difference.

Over the period of a school term, our trained and experienced staff can work with students to:

• Draw up a list of recommendations for changes that would reduce bullying
• Work with pupils and school councils to present their ideas to the governing body
• Help to implement changes
• Review your anti-bullying policy in light of best practice
• Train students to act as Anti-Bullying Ambassadors (in secondary schools) or
Anti-Bullying Champions (in primary schools) and provide a peer reporting network
• Give all participating students a pin badge to make it clear to other pupils that they are someone safe to talk to
• Facilitate awareness-raising assemblies or workshops, or make a DVD in school that will inform the next cohort of students
• Accredit pupil involvement
• Provide teacher guidance and support to help establish the scheme

‘Around 20% of students report having been bullied in the last 6 months’

‘13% of young people who have suffered bullying report that it continued for several years’

‘It is believed that 16 to 20 young people commit suicide each year because of bullying’

‘Bullying has a dramatic impact on educational performance and attainment and for some causes a life-long legacy of damaged self-esteem’
(ABN, 2010)