ST Genevieve’s High School have launched a new pupil focused anti-bullying campaign led by Year 14 pupils.
The campaign is headed up by an anti-bullying committee who have been discussing issues arising from bullying with pupils in assemblies and it is planned that in the future, they will be available for one-to-one interactions with pupils who are experiencing bullying in the school.
The campaign slogan ‘See it, Hear it, Stop it’ was thought up by Year 8 pupil, Erin Donnelly and it aims to equip students with the skills and confidence to come forward to the staff or other students when they are the victim of or witness bullying.
Explaining how she came up with the slogan, Erin said: “In SE we were talking about anti-bullying as it was Anti-Bullying Week. We had to come up with slogans and I thought of See it, Hear it, Stop it because it sounds good, it’s short and easy to remember.”
Year 14 pupil, Casey Austin said that they started the campaign when they returned to school in September to let other students know that other students and the teachers have a zero tolerance approach to bullying.
“We want our school to be a bully-free zone. I think everyone has experienced bullying to some degree. Mental health is such a big thing now and we hope this campaign can raise awareness that yes bullying happens but it is okay and you can get help,” she said.
Another Year 14 pupil, Chloe Marley added: “It is always happening and there is an Anti-Bullying Week. It shouldn’t be just a week and we should be tackling it all of the time. Students shouldn’t be afraid to talk about it and we shouldn’t have other pupils having to sit by themselves or hide it.
“Students should have someone that they can go to and feel comfortable talking about how they are feeling. It is not just about bullying, they might just be feeling low or have fallen out with their friends and this gives us the opportunity to help them.”
Encouraging other schools to get involved, Chloe said that other students should link in with their teachers and ask how they can do something similar.
“We need to raise awareness so that nobody feels by themselves because it is not a nice place to be” she finished.
