The Mentoring Service at Children First Derby continues to see an increasing number of young people experiencing bullying. Our Young People’s Forum (of 8 mentees and former mentees) joined staff in a consultation to address the growing concerns of the challenges victims of bullies and their parents face. This led to an urgent request for change.
In a powerful effort to raise awareness of the devastating effects of bullying and help to promote lasting change, our young people created a portable sculpture to demonstrate their feelings of frustration.
The sculpture is a statement piece that communicates their message of “Zero Tolerance”. It will be displayed around various schools during anti-bullying week.
The project includes partnerships with Artcore, Allegiance Jiu Jitsu, local schools, Councillors, mental health professionals, law enforcement, and the Anti Bullying Alliance.
The overall aim of the campaign is to encourage young people to speak out, share lessons learned and encourage a collaborative approach to take a stand against bullying all year round.
“We believe everyone has the right to feel safe and respected and no one should have to face bullying alone,” said The Mentoring Team “This campaign is not just about prevention; it’s about creating lasting change to ensure all children and young people’s mental health is not negatively impacted and they feel safe and confident to engage in education”
“It has been a pleasure to work in partnership with Children First on the Anti Bullying Project over the last year. I am so proud of all the young people involved and they have created an amazing sculpture highlighting the importance of ‘standing up and speaking out’. They have successfully collaborated with staff and artists to shape their ideas and bring them to fruition. Their outcome showcases their unwavering commitment to raising awareness on the issues that matter.”
“Through their work, we know that no one has to suffer in silence.”
“They are truly courageous advocates for building a more respectful and tolerant world.” – Sarah Artcore
From playgrounds to parliament, our homes to our phones, this Anti-Bullying Week let’s ‘Choose Respect’ and bring an end to bullying which negatively impacts millions of young lives.
Why is this Antibullying campaign needed?
- Statistics show that 30% of children have been bullied in the last year alone
- 17% happens online
- One child in every classroom is experiencing bullying each day
Bullying has a significant impact on a child’s life and can last well into adulthood, with adults who were bullied more likely to:
- Experience mental health issues
- Earn less money
- Be unemployed
- Be obese
- Not being a stable relationship
- Leave school with no qualifications
NCB Anti Bullying Alliance
What is the big give?
The Big Give is a match funding platform dedicated to making it easy for the public and funders to give to impactful charities. The Christmas Challenge is the UK’s biggest match-funded campaign and we need your support so we can continue supporting vulnerable children, young people and families.
Reach for wellbeing
We will deliver two 8 week programmes that will cover the following areas:: Mental Health – Exercise – Social connections – Cooking – Confidence – Compare and despair – Solitude and loneliness – Sleep – A celebratory meal to conclude. After which the cohort will be encouraged to join a weekly Peer Support Group of like-minded individuals and benefit from group activities. Each programme will accommodate 12 participants per programme and will support 24 parents over the year. .
