As part of the national Anti-Bullying Week campaign, students at St Edward’s school have led a week of activities aimed at raising awareness of bullying and how to make it stop.
Anti-Bullying Week takes place in schools across England every November. This year’s theme, ‘Change Starts With Us’, has been embraced by students at St Edward’s School who have helmed a series of events throughout the week and taken ownership in the fight against bullying.
A group of student leaders at St Edward’s all received training on being anti-bullying ambassadors as part of the Diana Award Anti-Bullying project to start the week. They used this training to lead the week’s activities, spread awareness of bullying, as well as introducing initiatives to remind everyone at the school of the week’s theme and help their contemporaries.
This included presenting a series of assemblies throughout the week where they spoke to other students about what bullying is, as well as the different ways to help to make it stop. Following the assemblies, ambassadors made special visits to tutor groups across the whole school to provide further advice on identifying and challenging bullying plus how those experiencing bullying can get support.
The ambassadors also launched a new school initiative as part of Anti-Bullying Week. Throughout the rest of the school year, anti-bullying ambassadors will now be available every lunchtime to support any peers who would prefer to speak to a fellow student and report any issues.
Chris Farrow, Assistant Headteacher of St Edward’s, said:
“It has been really encouraging to see our students take responsibility and action this Anti-Bullying Week. Our anti-bullying ambassadors have set an excellent example for our whole school and helped their fellows understand what bullying is and how we can all help to ensure it stops.”
Anti-Bullying Week at St Edward’s culminated on Friday 22nd November with a Feel-Good Friday Challenge in which all students were challenged to do five random acts of kindness. St Edward’s student’s acts of kindness ranged from donating to charity, litter picking, to complimenting their peers.
One of St Edward’s Anti-Bullying Ambassadors, said:
“We came up with the Feel-Good Friday idea as a way for all students in the school to help create a safer, happier and more inclusive community. We wanted to remind everyone of the Anti-Bullying Week theme and help them remember that ‘change starts with us’”
St Edward’s School is a joint CofE and Catholic School at Dale Valley Road, Poole. For more information on St Edward’s School, visit: www.website.network.st-edwards.poole.sch.uk/
