Pupil Voice Week 2017 will be celebrated by schools both nationally and internationally with the theme ‘It’s Your Voice’.
What is Pupil Voice Week?
Coordinated by tootoot, Pupil Voice Week is designed to encourage primary and secondary schools to raise awareness of key issues, such as bullying, cyberbullying, racism, mental health and e-safety issues, that children and young people may face on a daily basis.
This year the theme is ‘It’s Your Voice’. We aim to celebrate the diversity and individuality of The Pupil Voice, encouraging pupils to use their voice be themselves and create positivity for those around them.
Pupil Voice Week will also have a focus on pupils' mental health, ensuring that they are encouraged to use their voice to speak-up about their mental health and wellbeing.
Pupil Voice Week calls upon pupils, parents, carers, teachers, social workers, councils, companies and policy makers, to join together and explore ways that they can empower pupils, giving them the knowledge and tools they need to feel confident to use their voice.
Why is it important?
Within the past year 1.5 million children and young people have been bullied.
Children and young people can be bullied for all manner of reasons from appearance and accents to gender and race. And although not their fault, it can still have a huge impact on their self-confidence, mental health and wellbeing.
As much as 36% of children and young people who have been bullied said it made them feel depressed and at least half of suicides amongst young people are related to bullying,
This is why we want to celebrate the pupil voice, the fact that’s it’s good to be different, and that a pupil’s voice is the most important part of them.
When is Pupil Voice Week?
Pupil Voice Week is the 25th – 29th September 2017 with activities running throughout the week in schools, organisations and online.
Celebrating Your Voice – Our Call to Action!
We want Pupil Voice Week 2017 to empower pupils, helping them to understand that their differences are to be celebrated.
With this in mind we’re challenging our staff, partners (and their staff!), and schools to share with us what makes them unique! All you need to do is print-out the speech-bubble task and tell us what makes your voice unique. Is it your Confidence? Kindness? Friendliness? We can’t wait to see. Take a picture, boomerang or video of you and your speech-bubble and share with us on social media by using #PupilVoiceWeek and tagging @tootootofficial. You can download a blank speech bubble here
How else can we get involved?
There are a range of ways you can support with Pupil Voice Week:
Use the resources on pupilvoiceweek.co.uk to help inspire and shape your own campaign.
Speak to your schools and partner organisations, let them know about Pupil Voice Week and the ways that they can get involved.
Write a blog raising awareness of the importance for pupils to know it’s their voice and it’s good to be unique! – make sure you send it to us so we can share it too!
Send a newsletter to your key audience groups, encouraging them to participate in Pupil Voice Week.
Contact local press and key decision makers, speak to them about the importance of raising awareness with pupils nationally, and ask them to help promote the week.
Join the conversation on social media during the lead-up to, and throughout the week, using the hashtag #PupilVoiceWeek and tag @tootootofficial.
Send us pictures or videos of what you get up to, to pupilvoiceweek@tootoot.co.uk, and we’ll feature them across our social media – you might even make it into next year’s video!
Speak to your schools and partner organisations, let them know about Pupil Voice Week and the ways that they can get involved.
Need some help getting started?
We have a range of free resources to help you kick-start your campaign, you can find them at pupilvoiceweek.co.uk. As well as those, feel free to use any of the facts and figures below to help shape your Pupil Voice Week campaign, both on and offline.
Within the past year 1.5 million children and young people have experienced bullying (Ditch the Label).
83% of young people say that bullying has a negative impact on their self-esteem (Ditch the Label).
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15-29 year olds (World Health Organisation)
64% of children who were bullied did not report it (Petrosina et al, 2010)
3 in 5 young people say that homophobic bullying has a direct impact on their school work and it made straight A students want to leave education entirely (Stonewall).
For more information visit pupilvoiceweek.co.uk
Written by
Michael Brennan
on September 21, 2017 11:00
Running from the 24th – 28th September, this year’s Pupil Voice Week has more partners and resources than ever before to help schools celebrate.
Internet Matters in partnership with tootoot, and supported by the Department for Education, are inviting schools to take part in a pilot online service to report bullying and cyber bullying concerns.
