HERNE View School, Ilminster Key Stage 2 students all came together last week to create their own acrostic poem for Anti-Bullying Week 2024. 

Anti-Bullying Week 2024 took place from Monday, November 11 - Friday, with this year's theme being "Choose Respect".

Anti-Bullying Week is an annual event that aims to raise awareness of bullying, with an emphasis on prevention and effective responses to bullying. It began in 2002 and is coordinated by the Anti-Bullying Alliance.

The children at Herne View School aim to use the poem they wrote during the week in school to ensure their message is shared so that the whole community remembers this year’s anti-bullying week message of respect. 

Likewise the poem seeks to encourage children across Key Stages to always choose tolerance, acceptance and kindness when interacting with their peers.

The poem the children collectively created is written as follows:

Respect other’s boundaries

Emotions are important – try to help others with them

Stop leaving people out

Persuade bullying to stop

Empathise with others

Consideration of others – celebrate others’ achievements

Treat others how you want to be treated

The children were all very empathetic when considering how to support anti-bullying and this was eloquently described by Sam in Y6, who, when asked why anti-bullying week is so important, said: "I think it is really important as bullying isn’t right and people shouldn’t be picked on for their differences either inside or out. I want everyone to understand that we are all different in our own unique way and that doesn’t make you any less of a person."