NEWCHURCH Primary School, Culcheth decided to make a lasting impression on pupils and the village in general to mark Anti-Bullying Week.
They approached businesses, other schools and organisations asking them to join them in making a “Zero Tolerance to Bullying” pledge.
The school has been recognised for some years for its excellent work on anti-bullying and received a “gold” in the Warrington Wise-up Awards for two consecutive years.
This year’s pledge was to educate all stakeholders on what constitutes bullying, to develop a culture where whistle-blowing on bullying is seen as everyone’s responsibility and detailing with any incidents of bullying and trying to make sure they are stopped.
Pupils were delighted with the response of the other groups they approached and congratulated them on committing to make the village a happier, safer place.
To raise the profile of their message, they dressed the village in blue bows post boxes, lamp posts, railings, etc.
They also wore blue ribbons on one day of the campaign.
Next year, they hope to spread the pledge to the whole village – and anyone interested in joining in should contact the school office or visit the school website www.newchurchprimary.co.uk/website
Anti-hate and anti-bullying campaigner Adrian Derbyshire, who launched #SASSY (Support Against Self Harm & Suicide in Youth) following the tragic death of his own daughter Julia Derbyshire, who took her own life after being a victim of online bullying, recently visited the school.
He said: “I have visited nearly every school in Warrington in recent years and have to say Newchurch is one of the best at dealing with the issue of bullying. They are an exemplar school when it comes to the issue of raising awareness about hate crime and the impact cyber bullying has on victims.”
