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In conjunction with Anti-Bullying Week 2026, the first topic we’ll be covering is breaking the silence about school bullying.
Encouraging Students to Speak Up
We need to foster an attitude in all pupils that bullying is not acceptable and should not be tolerated.
It is crucial to create an environment in schools where anyone can speak up and share their feelings on bullying issues, whether they are targets of bullying or have only witnessed bullying occurrences.
Urging Young People to Report School Bullying
Outlined below are some major reasons why all bullying should be reported. Young people need to be educated to know how bullying affects people and the importance of reporting any incidences of bullying or cyberbullying.
Attention should be drawn to policies, guidelines and procedues to follow if any bullying is witnessed.
Some Reasons to Stamp Out School Bullying
It is imperative that the eradication of bullying is prioritised in all schools and youth environments for a wide spectrum of reasons.
Painful Effects on the Bullying Target
Besides the obvious physical worries associated with bullying, young people can suffer from a range of mental health issues, substance abuse problems, or develop eating disorders — leading to childhood obesity or other health concerns.
Sadly, their academic performance will also more than likely deteriorate. A young person finishing school without reaching their full potential, because their education suffered from bullying, is very unfair. Leaving school having underachieved can greatly impact their future life and career prospects.
We address the mental health effects specifically in the next article of this series.
School Reputation
A school’s standing among young people, parents, teaching staff, as well as with educational organisations, can depend solely on the prevalence of bullying or how it’s dealt with. A solid focus on bullying prevention and awareness will help to counter any negative impact on its reputation.
On the other hand, a school’s popularity and approval rating can be boosted if a firm stance is taken on dealing with and tackling bullying.
Parental Concerns
Parents with children that are being bullied are also important to think about. We don’t often consider how parents are affected by school bullying. The anxiety they experience can be as bad as their child’s.
School bullying can result in an unhappy home life for the target, which can in turn affect the whole family. There’s also the added stress for parents worrying about their child each day.
Schools that fail to tackle bullying appropriately can exacerbate all the problems outlined above.
Ways to Break the Silence on School Bullying
What can be done to tackle bullying in schools and break the silence? We need to provide ways that encourage young people to talk openly and honestly about any bullying concerns they may have — it’s important they know where to go and who to talk to.
Support for Victims
There must be someone always available to discuss these issues with. The right person to talk to should be approachable and capable to deal with the problem swiftly and directly.
Anyone on the receiving end of bullying needs to know that they will be heard. If they are particularly distressed or traumatised, they should be made to feel relaxed and able share their feelings with confidence and total privacy.
Encouraging Bystanders
Those that witness the bullying of someone else should feel comfortable enough to speak up and inform of any incidences, again, with privacy in mind.
All young people should be encouraged to tell the facts without feeling as though they’re a ‘grass’ or being disloyal if the bully is one of their friends. This also includes reporting the spread of hateful online messages or social media posts.
Anti-Bullying Policy
Create a strong and unambiguous anti-bullying policy for your school, which clearly outlines your school’s standpoint on bullying. Our free template can help you get started.
It should contain procedures for reporting incidences of bullying and cyberbullying with details of how issues will be handled. Also include:
- A definition of bullying.
- Available support for bullying victims.
- Details of exactly who people can talk to.
Once you have a good policy in place you need to make sure it is promoted around the school and everyone is aware of its contents and guidelines. It would also be useful to display it on your school website so that it can be viewed by parents and students alike.
In the following article we detail some of ‘The Effects of Childhood and Teenage Bullying’.
School Bullying Resources
Bullying — A Complete Approach
School Workbook
Contains hints and tips for teachers, parents and young people to enable them to identify and tackle bullying.
- Published: 1999
- Last revised: 2022
- Pages: 94
Price: £5.69 Now: £2.28
Personal Safety in Cyberspace
School Workbook
This pack looks at the dangers of online grooming, malicious software, webcams, cyberbullying and scams.
- Published: 1999
- Last revised: 2023
- Pages: 73
Price: £4.19 Now: £1.68
Bullying Lesson Plans
Bullying and Cyberbullying
Lesson Plan
This lesson plan covers how to deal with bullying and cyberbullying and contains handouts for the classroom.
- Published: 2019
- Last revised: 2021
- Pages: 15
Price: £0.79 Now: £0.32
Bullying
Lesson Plan
This covers bullying, the types of bullying, the bully, the target and how to tackle bullying.
- Published: 2019
- Last revised: 2021
- Pages: 13
Price: £2.99 Now: £0.32
Playground Bullying
Lesson Plan
A lesson plan on playground bullying, the issues caused and addressing the topic.
- Published: 2022
- Pages: 17
Price: £0.79 Now: £0.32
Safety in Cyberspace
Lesson Plan
This lesson plan examines the dangers of the internet and how to stay safe on the web.
- Published: 2019
- Last revised: 2022
- Pages: 14
Price: £0.79 Now: £0.32
Social Media — The Pros and Cons
Lesson Plan
A lesson plan on social media. It goes into the benefits of social media as well as social media safety.
- Published: 2018
- Last revised: 2022
- Pages: 18
Price: £0.79 Now: £0.32
Free School Bullying Resources
Anti-Bullying Policy For Schools
Free Template
A free template to help you develop your own anti-bullying policy for your school.
- Published: 2023
- Pages: 8
Free Download
Targets of Bullying
Free Resource
This free download covers what a bully is and the targets of bullying. See our resource pack 'Bullying — A Complete Approach' for a more comprehensive discussion on bullying, including worksheets, activities and lessons.
- Published: 2019
- Pages: 6
Free Download