Anti-bullying ambassadors provide students with a listening ear

Whitworth Community High School Anti-Bullying Ambassadors

New anti-bullying ambassadors at Whitworth Community High School have undergone special training to help them with their new role in school.

The scheme was first introduced into the high school in May 2016 and Elysha Quigley, 14, was among the first to undergo the training and has remained on the team.

This year she helped to select new ambassadors and ten students attended a training session at St Anthony’s Catholic College in Manchester, provided by the Diana Award.

Elysha said: “We are there for the students to fall back on, because sometimes it can be hard to discuss issues with a teacher.

“It is good that the students know that they can talk to us and we can pass messages on to the teachers for them.

“It can be hard to identify when someone is being bullied, times are changing and there are many different forms of bullying that can be hard for adults to understand.

“I decided to carry on in my role because this is something that I care passionately about, and I think all schools should have anti-bullying ambassadors.”

Sophie Barnes, 13, said she found the training very useful and the ‘Chinese Whispers’ workshop showed clearly how messages can get distorted when they are retold.

Meeral Kamran, 13, said: “We learnt how to be a mediator and that the most important thing is to listen to both sides.”

Ella Lord, 12, added: “We learnt that is also important, as an ambassador, to keep yourself safe.”

The team is led by Assistant Headteacher Paul Dugdale assisted by Jane Ashworth from the Pastoral team.