Anti-bullying Week 16 – 20 November 2015

This year’s anti-bullying week runs from 16 – 20 November, and the focus is ‘Cyberbullying and E-Safety’. Bullying is an ongoing issue that affects a great number of people growing up which in turn can have a massive impact on an individual’s mental health both as a young person and as an adult.

Anti-bullying charity Ditch the Label – a pioneering organisation – says, “Bullying is a learnt behaviour and we won’t stop until it’s over.”

Did you know?

• 7 in 10 young people aged 13 to 22 have experienced cyber bullying
• More than 16,000 young people are absent from school due to bullying
• 1 in 3 LGB pupils who experience homophobic bullying change their plans for future education because of it
• 69% of young people have witnessed somebody else being bullied, 43% of which see it at least once a week
• 74% of those who have been bullied, have, at some point been physically attacked
• 17% have been sexually assaulted
• As a result of bullying, 29% self-harmed, 27% skipped class, 14% developed an eating disorder and 12% ran away from home.
• Highest risk to bullying were the following groups: all types of disability, LGBT and low income backgrounds
• 45% did not report bullying. 32% of which felt it would not be taken seriously, 32% were too embarrassed and 26% were scared of it getting worse.

For the full reports and research go to Ditch the Label Research

And in the workplace

• 80% of managers know that bullying is occurring in their workplace
• 49% of managers have suffered bullying themselves
• Bullying affects 1 in 4 people in the workplace today
• Bullying is a major cause of staff grievance, high stress levels and high absenteeism
• 19 million sick days are lost due to bullying per annum
• Sickness absence is costing the UK £13 billion per annum

For full details click here

What can we do?

We can do any/all of the following during Anti-bullying week (16-20 November) but you can also give ongoing support:

• You can support Stonewall’s NoBystanders campaign – watch the video and sign the pledge online or download it here
• Promote pictures of colleagues signing the pledge using social media
• Use the email signature at the end of all your emails during Anti-bullying week:

• Each and every person in Britain has a responsibility to tackle bullying and abuse. Don’t be a bystander: www.nobystanders.org.uk
• Hang posters around your offices and sites to advertise routes available to report instances of bullying and harassment
• Did you know that Hallam’s Student Union advice centre is a third party reporting centre for hate crime where both staff and students can report a hate crime or incident in complete confidence either by phone or in person?