posted by Alita Spink, Schools and Learning Support Officer, Schools and Learning 

To assist people working with young people in education to focus on homophobia, biphobia and transphobia during National Anti-Bullying Week (14th-18th of November), we’ve created assemblies and an activity for schools and teachers. For ease of planning, the assemblies are split into primary and secondary, while the activity is unlevelled and easily adaptable to suit the needs of students.

LGBT Youth Scotland’s ‘Life in Scotland for LGBT Young People: Education Report’ tells us that LGBT young people in Scotland can face a particularly challenging time at school. The report asked LGBT young people about their experiences of bullying and found that that:

• 69.1% of all LGBT respondents has experienced homophobic or biphobic bullying in school.
• 76.9% of transgender respondents had experienced homophobic, biphobic or transphobic bulling at school.
• More than half of those who had experienced homophobic and biphobic bullying believed that it has negatively impacted on their education, rising to more than 88% of those who had experienced transphobic bullying.
• 10% of all LGBT young people had left education as a result of homophobia, biphobia or transphobia within the educational establishment.
• 14.3% of all LGBT young people had left education as a result of their direct experience of homophobic or biphobic bullying, rising to 42.3% for those who had experienced transphobic bullying.

LGBT Youth Scotland has resources for teachers and people working in education to help address incidents of homophobic, biphobic or transphobic bullying. You can find more information about recognising and responding to these types of bullying, and lesson plans to address their underlying causes and effects, in our Toolkit for Teachers: Dealing with Homophobia and Homophobic Bullying in Scottish Schools.

If you are working with a young person looking for information or support (or you are a young person yourself), find out about our local youth groups and our online digital youth work service. Our advice section, or resources for LGBT young people might also be useful.

TEACHING AND EDUCATION RESOURCES FOR ANTI-BULLYING WEEK CAN BE FOUND HERE