- Anti-bullying toolkit launched by NSPCC Scotland and respectme
- Children’s Minister Maree Todd says toolkit will ‘help guide adults across Scotland on how to best support youth-led anti-bullying work’
A toolkit to help schools across Scotland run youth-led campaigns to tackle online bullying has been launched by NSPCC and respectme.
The Think B4 You Type toolkit, which was designed by the two children’s organisations alongside a group of young people from Angus, gives guidance to adults on setting up anti-bullying campaigns.
The resource was born out of a campaign run last year by NSPCC Scotland, respectme and Angus Council, which saw eight secondary schools in the area work to raise awareness of online bullying and find local, youth-led solutions to prevent and address it.
The activities put on by the young people in the schools included arranging sessions with peers to discuss online bullying, making a film on the impact of text bullying and social media comments, holding peer support drop in sessions and giving presentations in assemblies.
Rachel Talbot, who attends Brechin High School in Angus, was on the youth advisory group for the original campaign.
The 13-year-old said: “By working with our peers in our schools and sharing our own experiences, together we were able to create the Think B4 You Type campaign and make recommendations to Angus City Council regarding their anti-bullying policy in our schools.
“This issue matters to me so much personally, because when I was in primary school I was bullied both in person and online.
“It’s important to me to do as much as I can to try to stop anyone from going through the same thing and to help the ones who unfortunately do.
“I believe the activities that we ran at school during anti-bulling week, made everyone really think about the issue and the impact it can have on people’s lives.”
Every year, hundreds of young people from across Scotland contact the NSPCC’s Childline service about their bullying concerns, with cyberbullying becoming increasingly prevalent.
A 14-year-old girl told Childline: “I am being bullied by a girl at school. She has taken photos of me and posted them on Snapchat calling me fat and ugly and how I will never have a boyfriend.
“I have been having suicidal thoughts as this girl is really popular and she has turned my whole year against me.”
Another teenage girl told a counsellor: “Every day I wake up scared to go to school, scared about the comments people will make and scared about walking home. Then I get in and log onto my social networking site and there are horrible messages everywhere.
“It’s like there’s no escaping the bullies. I’m struggling to cope with how upset I feel so sometimes I cut myself just to have a release but it’s not enough. I can’t go on like this.”
Carla Malseed, NSPCC Scotland’s campaigns manager, said: “All children who are affected by bullying can suffer harm – whether they are bullied, they bully others or they witness bullying – and the effects of bullying can last into adulthood.
“Our Childline counsellors talk to hundreds of children in Scotland about bullying each year. Many young people talk about it affecting their self-worth and feeling trapped and isolated.
“While this toolkit focuses on online bullying, it is important that this is looked at in the wider context of relationships, and that any campaign considers the link between online and offline bullying.”
Wendy Harrington, director of respectme, Scotland’s anti-bullying service, said: “The youth-led campaign and activities run in Angus schools last year showed the power of young people to create change in their communities.
“It is vital that young people are empowered to support improvement in their own and their peers’ lives; they are the experts in their own experiences, and their understanding, ideas and solutions are essential to make these campaigns a success.”
Scotland’s Minister for Children and Young People, Maree Todd said: “All forms of bullying, including online bullying, are totally unacceptable. It is great to see young people coming together to take charge and make changes for the better.
“The hard work the young people in Angus have invested into the ‘Think B4 You Type’ campaign which has led to the development of the toolkit, shows the true passion and commitment of everyone involved.
“The toolkit will help guide adults across Scotland on how to best support youth-led anti-bullying work and it will act as a valuable legacy for the campaign.”
As well as providing guidance for adults, the toolkit includes templates and further learning for direct use by the young people themselves. Schools can download a copy of the toolkit from respectme.org.uk
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