Member Article

Campaign launched to help Yorkshire schools tackle bullying

The Education Network, a pioneering education recruitment company with offices in Yorkshire and the Humber, has launched a campaign to support local schools in the battle to stamp out bullying behaviour.

Kevin Gill, managing director at The Education Network, explains: “The challenge for schools to tackle bullying isn’t going away. *Statistics show that 1 in 10 children have reported being bullied, 44% have witnessed another pupil being bullied in the last 12 months, over 2 million worry about bullying and nearly a quarter of them don’t tell anyone if they are being bullied.

“These figures are damning, and sadly bullying is a problem which will probably always exist in some form. However it is our aim to work with all of our partner schools in the area to raise awareness, share best practice and reduce its prevalence and impact through our national anti-bullying initiative in 2016.”

The Education Network’s ‘Anti-Bullying’ campaign provides various resources including a school information pack which has been compiled using national guidance from key organisations including Ofsted, Kidscape and Bullying UK, along with case studies and real-life examples of best practice provided by its partner schools, which have received official recognition for their anti-bullying strategies.

To kick off its anti-bullying campaign, The Education Network is running a competition with local schools inviting children to pick a name for ‘PANDA’, its larger than life and very cuddly anti-bullying campaign mascot.

The winning entry will win the school a choice of prizes worth up to £400 and the pupil who comes up with the name will also win a Kindle HD Fire. The deadline to enter is Friday 15 April. Schools can enter at: www.theeducationnetwork.co.uk/pandaname

Lee Witherwick, The Education Network’s recruitment services manager for Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “Any bullying, whether physical or non-physical, could lead to lasting psychological damage to the individual.

“The internet, social media and mobile phones are often used as a way of intimidating and attacking young people and cyberbullying is the one of the greatest challenges faced by schools today.

“Through our anti-bullying campaign we aim to complement existing school procedures for safeguarding children, promoting equality and tackling discrimination, by providing them with additional support and the very latest official guidance.

“Meanwhile our PANDA mascot has been designed to help schools bring the campaign to life. They can arrange for a special visit to reward a class or the whole school where they have demonstrated success in working together to make the school a place where bullying will not be tolerated. The mascot also provides a fun and engaging way for schools to launch their anti-bullying strategies or celebrate good behaviour and great work achieved by pupils and anti-bullying champions.”

The Education Network operates 15 offices nationally with further plans for expansion this year. It specialises in recruiting teachers, teaching assistants, nursery nurse staff and SEN specialists for schools and colleges across the UK.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Round Table Solutions Ltd .