Anti-Bullying Week: Choose Respect

This week millions of children across the UK are taking part in Anti-Bullying Week, which is organised each year by the Anti-Bullying Alliance, a coalition of organisations and individuals who work together to stop bullying and create safer environments in which children and young people can live, grow, play and learn. The week starts with Odd Socks Day where adults and children wear odd socks to celebrate what makes us all unique.

Kindness fuels kindness…

This years theme is Choose Respect – this came about because teachers and children wanted a theme that empowered them to do something positive to counter the harm and hurt that bullying causes. Anti-Bullying Week will remind everyone – whether it’s in school, at home, in the community or online – to choose respect and create a positive sense of community.

We all need to feel part of a wider community…

At its core the human givens approach is a highly empowering idea – that human beings, like all organic beings, come into this world with a set of needs. If those needs are met appropriately, it is not possible to be mentally ill. Community is one of our 9 essential emotional needs – find out more >

Feeling safe, secure and valued is essential to children’s mental wellbeing and healthy development. As parents, carers, teachers and friends, we can all help to stop, and prevent, bullying – but sometimes it can be difficult to know where to begin.

Pat Capel – classroom teacher of 25 years and trained HG psychotherapist – shares invaluable insights and clear techniques that can be applied in any situation. By approaching bullying behaviour – and its consequences – through the lens of unmet emotional needs, Pat shows how the HG approach sheds light on why bullying behaviour happens, and unlocks practical and effective strategies for preventing – and stopping – it.

Listen to the audio playlist here >

The impact of bullying…

Bullying can happen to anyone at any time – and its impact on an individual’s mental health can be devastating.

• 30% of children have been bullied in the last year alone
• 17% have been bullied online
• With approximately one child in EVERY CLASSROOM experiencing bullying each day

Bullying has a significant impact on a child’s life which can last well into adulthood, with adults who were bullied as children being more likely to:

• Experience a range of mental health issues
• Earn less money
• Be unemployed
• Be obese
• Not be in a stable relationship
• Leave school with no qualifications

Source Anti-Bullying Alliance 

Alex is a qualified human givens psychotherapist who has helped many individuals move forward from periods of difficulty in their life. With extensive experience of working with young people suffering with all forms of emotional distress. As well as his therapeutic practice, Alex is the founder of One Step borders CIC, an organisation which continues to support young people in the Scottish borders with their emotional and mental health.

Listen to the podcast here >