Our campaign is based around improving the lives of young asylum seekers and refugees in the Tees Valley through promoting best practice to reduce and challenge racist bullying in schools.  We believe teachers and other school staff should be trained on how to tackle racist bullying.

We are calling on key anti-bullying stakeholders through a Policy Briefing
to implement our policy recommendations. (Our Policy Briefing will be available to view soon)

We have produced a resource pack which, aims to provide teachers with practical, easy to use activities which will challenge bullying, especially against young asylum seekers and refugees.

Our group have been using these activities in our schools and local youth settings and we want to share them more widely.  Our main focus is on Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) at Key Stage 3 in secondary schools in England.

Teachers have an obligation to tackle racist bullying in schools and there is guidance in relation to how this area can be approached within the National Curriculum.  During Key Stage 3, teachers of PSHE and other subjects should aim to concentrate on two main areas in relation to racist bullying:

     •    The effects of bullying, racism and discrimination
     •    How to challenge bullying, racism and discrimination.

In our pack we have arranged our activity ideas in a learning progression for:

     •    Exploring attitudes
     •    Developing empathy
     •    Taking Action

Stop Bullying DVD - we have also produced a DVD of our experiences.
The DVD includes a drama featuring Rebecca, a young refugee who is being bullied at school.  She looks for and ultimately finds help, and discovers that bullies may need help too.   Intercut with the drama sections young asylum seekers and refugees and their peers are featured talking at school about their experiences and views on bullying.  The DVD can be used to support all the activities in the resource pack.

Two of our group members have joined the Youth Action North East (YANE) steering group.  YANE is a regional young person’s advocacy and campaigning project and bullying/racist bullying is one of their priorities for 2009.

A Tees Valley group member has been successful in securing a 10 week voluntary work placement in Cost Rica and Nicaragua with Raleigh International which will take place during summer 2009.