The anti-bullying alliance was established in 2002.   The first Anti-Bullying Week took place in 2004.  Anti-Bullying Week has a different theme each year. This years anti bullying week theme is REACH OUT. 

Whether it's in school, at home, in the community or online, the anti-bullying alliance which has a zero tolerance ethos to bullying is promoting the idea that stopping bullying requires courage to reach out and that we all have a responsibility to reach out and show each other the support we need. 

-Reach out to someone you trust if you need to talk.

-Reach out to someone you know is being bullied. You can be an upstander, offer friendship and support, ask how are they and what choices they can make.

-Reach out and consider a new approach.

You can find out more about their initiative this year by visiting their website:  www.antibullyingalliance.org.uk

The Anti-Bullying Association introduced "Odd Socks Day" in 2017, starting on the first day of Anti-Bullying Week. Odd Socks Day celebrated diversity and helped raise awareness.

Monday 14th November 2022 is the day to put on your odd socks this year!

Spiral was established in 2016 to prevent the effects of bullying.  It would be great if we could eradicate bullying altogether but despite many years of zero tolerance policies in schools, bullying behaviour remains a common occurrence and a social problem.   Verbal harassment is the most common form of bullying at 79%, followed by social harassment at 50%, physical bullying at 29%, and cyberbullying at 25%. Almost 160,000 teenagers have skipped school because of bullying. Some fail to return to school at all, impacting their education and potential life opportunities.

At Spiral, we will continue to reach out to young people who are being bullied or have been in the past and are struggling to overcome the negative effects of that experience. We do this by offering one to one support sessions to young people to empower them to find solutions and to keep moving forward in recovery from the negative emotional, social and mental impacts bullying can have.

We also offer a safe online games night for young people who may find themselves feeling isolated, alone or just lacking confidence to engage socially with peers after negative bullying experiences.

We work in youth clubs engaging with young people to educate and to learn from them about their experiences.

Being bullied has lasting effects-even into adulthood- and Spiral aim to support people to lesson the harmful impact of bullying; to regain a sense of personal power and control and to have the confidence and tools to live the life they want to live and not be impeded by the legacy of bullying.

Spiral will also work with young people who are displaying bullying behaviour; sometimes they may be unaware of their actions and the harm they can cause; sometimes they have been harmed themselves; sometimes they are victims of other peoples unkindness and also need to experience kindness and compassion so that they can grow and change and be their best possible self.