Anti-Bullying Week (Monday 13 - Friday 17 November 2023) provides us with an opportunity to join in solidarity to tackle bullying. The theme for this year is ‘make a noise about bullying’ and hopes to provide a platform for people to speak out about bullying and share their own thoughts and experiences. It could also encourage people who are being bullied right now to find the strength to break their silence and speak up by telling someone they trust. 

Many of us have bullying-related stories to tell, and I hope people use this week to share them to help others. The more we speak out against bullying, the more we can learn and find ways to deal with it. By doing so, there is potential to change policy and practices in schools locally, nationally and internationally. 

But what happens when Anti-Bullying Week is over? When the assemblies stop, the posters are removed from the walls and the noise about bullying fades? Like other forms of abuse, bullying thrives on silence, and the reality is a lot of children being bullied don’t want to speak out about it. There are children who are afraid that if they report being victimised to a teacher that they will get bullied even more for doing so.  

Stemming from my own experiences at school, my research focuses on pupil voice and school bullying and was a particular subject of interest as I completed my psychology degree and Doctorate in Education.  I have worked closely with pupils in Yorkshire and the Midlands to listen to and analyse their experiences, and developed strategies to address the points they raised as a result. Details of these strategies can be found in my recent article, ‘The application of a Foucauldian approach to analyse school bullying: a critique’.  

I have found it useful to ask pupils the following questions: what experiences of bullying do pupils have? Why do children bully? How is bullying usually dealt with in school? How should bullying be dealt with? Children find it particularly beneficial to discuss their own lived experiences and to have the support from an expert to help address some of these issues. 

To encourage pupils to become more willing to speak out against bullying, try speaking openly and regularly with them about bullying and how pupils interact in school. Explain that bullying affects a lot of people, so it is important to speak about the issue, and ask them what they think about bullying to find out about their perceptions. Pupils could be taught about the policies and practices in schools for reporting and responding to bullying. Pupils who are being bullied could also be in involved in decisions on how their bullying is dealt with. Bullying can often be of a persistent nature so when it has been reported and dealt with, check that it does not reoccur by keeping dialogue and conversations open. 

This week, I hope that we have more substantial dialogue on bullying. But after Anti-Bullying Week is over, I hope that more voices are heard, and we can have more regular, meaningful conversations about bullying which contribute to improving how bullying is understood and dealt with. 

For further information on my work and the resources I have collated, visit my website, Bullied Voices or my research page. 

Dr Elizabeth Nassem is a Lecturer in Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Mental Health at Leeds Trinity University.