The Diana Award showcases the Respect Project, a two-year project providing training to schools, supporting them in tackling racist and sexual bullying behaviour.
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The Respect project was developed by two of The Diana Award programmes – Anti-Bullying and Young Changemakers.
The Anti-Bullying Programme raises awareness of bullying behaviour and supports schools and young people to tackle it across the UK and beyond. The programme has a strong peer-to-peer focus, with facilitators giving young people the skills and confidence to become Ambassadors to tackle bullying in their schools long after the training has finished.
Young Changemakers supports young people with Black and Black mixed-race heritage to channel their lived experiences into tackling racial injustices in mental health services in the UK. The Young Changemakers Programme is a collaboration between UK Youth, the Centre for Mental Health, and The Diana Award.
Together the programmes established online training sessions for Anti-Bullying Ambassadors to tackle racist and sexual bullying behaviour.
The training supported young people to understand what racist and sexual bullying behaviour is, to reflect on how it can make people feel, and to design creative campaigns to combat it. Post-training, the Ambassadors received bespoke support from anti-bullying experts to develop meaningful and tailored campaigns in their schools.
"The training has made me want to be a better person and to live in a community that brings people together, I think I know how to do that now."
– Young person, Anti-Racist Bullying Training (Primary)
“I have a greater understanding of, and appreciation for, the struggles people go through due to racism, and how often racist behaviour occurs. I also feel like I have more resources and techniques for dealing with bullying behaviour now, particularly racist bullying behaviour”
– Young Person, Anti-Racist Bullying training (Secondary)
“The clear and age-appropriate language was an excellent model for both children and adults to use when speaking to others. Very interactive and engaging for the children which was fabulous. It is empowering and pitched very well.”
- Teacher, Anti-Sexual Bullying Training
“It was amazing having an expert train our pupils - a fantastic and very valued opportunity for them”
– Teacher, Anti-Racist Bullying training (Primary)
“It was really useful for pupils to understand exactly what constitutes racist bullying and how it makes people feel. Also, to see that racist bullying is not just against those with a different skin colour, but also those such as Roma gypsy etc.”
– Teacher, Anti-Racist Bullying training (Secondary)
Throughout the showcase event, we heard from some inspirational Anti-Bullying Ambassadors about the incredible social action work they have done in their schools and communities since taking part in the Respect Project.
We were also delighted to be joined by Melvin and Crown from Not So Micro, a team of Young Changemakers who are campaigning for microaggression training to be mandatory in teacher training. Alongside them, two passionate students, India and Sammy, who spoke about their experiences of the anti-racist training. We also heard hear from Alex Holmes, deputy CEO of The Diana Award, and Mhairi Wyatt, who teaches at Crest Academy.
We rounded off the event by hearing from the inspirational changemaker Elliot Busari who is a mental health activist and emerging poet and writer. He uses his creativity to challenge stigma and raise awareness about revolutionising Black male mental health support.
Speaking at the London showcase event Tessy Ojo CBE, Chief Executive, The Diana Award, said;
“Today, we are here to celebrate the incredible achievements of our Anti-Bullying Ambassadors who have worked tirelessly to create safer and more inclusive environments for their peers through our respect project and we are immensely grateful for their dedication and hard work.“
“The impact of our Respect Project is evident in the positive feedback we receive. Young people now feel more confident in initiating conversations about racist and sexual bullying behaviour, and we have observed a significant improvement in their ability to report such incidents.“
Read more about why Anti-Bullying Ambassadors at William Hogarth Primary are proud to be Ambassadors and the projects they have worked on together. diana-award.org.uk/william-hogarth-primary-school
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Notes to Editors
For case studies/interviews, please contact Emma Pelling: 07958558172, emma@pellingpr.co.uk
BY THE NUMBERS_
· 188 primary schools
· 72 secondary schools
· 3239 young people - 2206 primary aged (626 anti-sexual and 1580 anti-racist bullying) and 1055 secondary aged
· Our Primary training was rated an average of 4.5 / 5 by the young people
· Our Secondary training was rated an average of 4.6 / 5 by the young people
· 100% of teachers would recommend our training to another school
MEDIA SPOKESPEOPLE_
Tessy Ojo CBE, Chief Executive, The Diana Award.
Tessy is a passionate and practical campaigner who has gained an international reputation for fostering positive change in the lives of young people and the impact it has on communities around them. At the heart of her work is the belief that with the right support and investment, young people are the best instigators for achieving real, sustainable change in their lives, their communities and the lives of their peers.
About The ‘Respect Project’
diana-award.org.uk/our-programmes-and-initiatives/tackle-racist-and-sexual-bullying-behaviour
About the charity – The Diana Award
The Diana Award was set up in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, and her belief that young people have the power to change the world for the better.
The charity fosters, develops and inspires positive change in the lives of young people through four key programmes which include; a mentoring programme for young people at risk, a youth-led anti-bullying ambassadors campaign, a collaborative Changemakers programme that aims to reimagine mental health support for young people with Black and Black mixed race heritage and a prestigious award which publicly recognises young activists – The Diana Award.
The Diana Award put the spotlight on 200 young people, spanning 45 countries, receiving the highly coveted accolade for social action or humanitarian efforts at a virtual Diana Award Ceremony.
Today sees a powerful coalition of organisations representing young voices, formed by The Diana Award, calling for urgent change in how we support young people impacted by racism.
Today the largest contemporary choir in the world, Rock Choir releases a very special music video for The Diana Award recorded at Althorp House in Northamptonshire.
