The latest episode of Thrive’s Connected podcast is celebrating National Bullying Prevention Month and Anti-Bullying Week. In this episode, we’re joined by Jo Warner, Assistant Director of Education on the Joint Education Team of the Durham and Newcastle Diocesan Boards of Education. Jo talks about the guidance that church schools receive around bullying and how the 106 schools she works with put this into practice. She also talks about the importance of taking a pro-active approach rather than simply responding to bullying incidents as they occur.
“If you’re only dealing with the tip of the iceberg and not looking below the surface at what you can do before something becomes an issue then it’s not effective,” she said.
Listen to the 9-minute podcast to discover:
- An outline of the Church of England guidance for schools, Valuing All God’s Children and how this relates to the protected characteristics (of the Equality Act) and to bullying in a broader sense
- Why relationships are crucial when it comes to creating an anti-bullying culture and why staff need to model positive relationships
- How Thrive has changed Jo’s practice as an education professional
- Why wellbeing needs to be a curriculum-wide approach, rather than staying confined to PSHE lessons
Listen to the podcast here
Over to you
To get you started on ways to improve your setting's anti-bullying culture this National Bullying Prevention Month, Thrive is offering two free webinars around implementing an anti-bullying culture. The first webinar, on October 31, is aimed at MATs, local authorities and dioceses looking for strategic, multi-site level guidance, while the second, on November 7, is tailored specifically for educators and leaders within single settings, such as schools or colleges, searching for practical initiatives.
Click here to find out more.
