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Next week sees both Stand Up To Bullying and Stop Cyberbullying Day address the issue of bullying

In figures released by charity Ditch the Label in their latest bullying survey, 1-in-2 young people have experienced bullying, with 1-in-10 having been bullied within the past week. In addition, their research revealed that young people feel that social networks are not currently doing enough about online bullying, with many feeling unsafe online.

Empowering pupils to take the lead on tackling bullying can help in schools, and participating in the forthcoming anti-bullying campaigns taking place next week can help enforce the message.

Stand up to Bullying Day - June 13th 2018
Stand Up To Bullying Day was started in 2016 by The Diana Award with HRH The Duke of Cambridge and aims to raise public awareness about bullying and its long term effect, create understanding about our collective role in tackling bullying and to empower the public with the tools to stand up to bullying; wherever they are.

Whether you're looking to support on social media, run a session in your school or review your anti-bullying policy there's plenty to get you going. Schools can download a resource pack with ideas for activities and fundraising events to support anti-bullying and the Stand Up To Bullying campaign. There is also a Thunderclap where schools can show their support.

Stop Cyberbullying Day - June 15th 2018
Stop Cyberbullying Day was founded by The Cybersmile Foundation on June 17th 2012, to promote online positivity and good digital citizenship.

Since then, every year on the third Friday in June, Stop Cyberbullying Day has become a growing force of positivity.

Stop Cyberbullying Day encourages people around the world to show their commitment toward a truly inclusive and diverse online environment for all – without fear of personal threats, harassment or abuse.

To get involved you can use the hashtag #STOPCYBERBULLYINGDAY on the day with your content (images, videos, articles) to let people know you are participating on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube - supporting a brighter, kinder internet. Schools can also sign up to pledge their support via the Thunderclap campaign leading up to the day.

Our sister site, Safeguarding Essentials (incorporating E-safety Support, offers resources to tackle bullying and cyber bullying. Join the FREE Membership service for the bullying assembly resource. E-safety Support members can also download cyber bullying specific resources and distribute Internet safety training. Safeguarding Essentials members have access to the full suite of cyber bullying and bullying resources including policies, teaching resources and staff training. Find out more.

Mental Health Awareness Week takes place between 14th and 20th May 2018

There is no doubt that social media, in its many forms, is a powerful community. From both a personal and professional perspective, social media can provide a vast array of information and connections that may not otherwise be possible in the offline world. But with this extraordinary ability to reach out to the wider world, comes the potential for risk.

In the latest Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes Report from Ofcom, findings suggest that almost a quarter of 8-11s and three-quarters of 12-15s have a social media profile. Their findings also concluded that one in eight 12-15s with a social media profile say there is pressure to look popular all of the time.

Researchers from the University of Melbourne’s National Centre of Excellence in Youth Mental Health recently warned that studies have found an association between social media use and depression, anxiety, sleep problems, eating issues and suicide risk.

In addition, a recent University of Pittsburgh study of young adults suggested that heavy social media users were three times more likely to be depressed than occasional users.

The popularity of social media combined with these risks and added to all the other stresses of growing up, it's easy to understand how almost 1 in 4 children and young people show some evidence of mental ill health (including anxiety and depression), as reported by Young Minds.

Mental Health Awareness Week

With Mental Health Awareness Week just around the corner, now is an ideal time to discuss mental health issues with pupils.

This year, the campaign focus is on stress. Organisers, the Mental Health Foundation, add that "by tackling stress, we can go a long way to tackle mental health problems such as anxiety and depression, and, in some instances, self-harm and suicide. We will look at how we can tackle stress and help improve our mental health."

For more information about Mental Health Awareness Week including ideas on how you can get involved, visit www.mentalhealth.org.uk

The UK Youth #KeepMeSafe campaign continues during National Safeguarding Month

UK Youth polled 1,000 18-25-year-olds and found that young people spend more than six hours a day feeling stressed or worried. Money, appearance and career worries as well as fears about the future mean a large chunk of their time is spent feeling anxious or under pressure.

One in 10 young people feel they have no-one to turn to discuss their concerns, leaving them battling through alone.

A further 67 per cent admitted they had come across problems in their life where they felt they had nobody to lean on for help.

As a result, 56 per cent have ended up in more trouble after keeping a problem to themselves rather than confiding in someone else.

A spokesperson for UK Youth said: “It’s concerning to see just how long young people spend feeling worried or stressed and how many of them have to go through these issues alone, without anyone to turn to for advice and guidance.

“Despite living in our ever-connected world, young people need safe spaces more than ever. For many, their local youth club is the only place that provides them with a trusted adult to confide in and access to the advice, support and guidance needed to feel safe and build bright futures.

“But to stop young people feeling worried or stressed in a society where issues of grooming, online peer pressure, extremism and hate crimes are rising, many youth services need to be supported with additional safeguarding resources and training to #KeepMeSafe.”

That’s why UK Youth have launched their new #KeepMeSafe campaign, which calls on all organisations working with young people to Stop what they’re doing, Look at their safeguarding policies, Listen to young people and take action during National Safeguarding Month.

Their study also found that despite spending such a huge amount of time feeling concerned, the average young person has just four people they feel they could turn to for help.

And although 18-25-year-olds having an average of 165 ‘friends’ on social media, 85 per cent still have moments where they feel lonely.

In fact, more than 40 per cent think social media only adds to their worries and stress with more than half of those saying it leaves them feeling under more pressure to keep up with everyone.

Others say they struggle with the lack of privacy, (29%), the pressure to impress others (40%) and feeling like they need to make their live sound better than it really is (33%).

But researchers found that even those who do have someone they can approach with a problem don’t always get the help they need with more than half admitting they have felt ‘fobbed off’ or ignored by someone.

And 68 per cent find it difficult to share problems in the first place.

This leads to more than six in 10 respondents being more likely to battle on alone than go to anyone else if they have a problem or need advice.

UK Youth’s spokesperson added: “Safeguarding has hit the headlines recently but it’s something we’ve been working to strengthen for a long time now. Research from our network and these new stats suggest the needs of young people have transformed in the last few years due to online/offline pressures and societal changes, which means an increased the level of support is needed to #KeepMeSafe.

“We’ve taken the positive approach to support our membership and work with colleagues across the youth sector to improve safeguarding and better support young people at a grass roots level in youth organisations across the UK. We’ve developed a safeguarding programme and assurance scheme to set a benchmark for youth organisations and support the delivery of a minimum level of practice consistent with operating a safe organisation.

“After the success of last year’s launch of National Safeguarding Month and in light of recent events, we hope our #KeepMeSafe campaign encourages all organisations working with young people take time to Stop what they’re doing, Look at their safeguarding policies, Listen to their young people and take action.”

#KeepMeSafe runs throughout National Safeguarding Month (from 1st-31st March) - Find out more about #KeepMeSafe here .

Safeguarding Essentials

Providing a holistic approach to protect children against both offline and online risks is vital. This is why we are launching Safeguarding Essentials, a comprehensive service for Safeguarding future generations.

Safeguarding Essentials will provide a comprehensive range of safeguarding resources including teacher training, classroom resources, policies, checklists and parent guides, to better equip schools in preventing and detecting current risks faced by children.

Our new service will be accessible anytime and anywhere, empowering teachers to have the latest knowledge at their fingertips to deliver outstanding safeguarding practices with ease.

Further information about the new resources will be coming soon. You can register your interest in the new Safeguarding Essentials service here.