What is Anti-Bullying Week?
Anti-Bullying Week is the UK’s biggest annual campaign to tackle bullying in schools. Organised by the Anti-Bullying Alliance (ABA), it takes place every November and reaches an estimated 8 million children and young people across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In recent years, more than 80% of schools have taken part.
Anti-Bullying Week 2026 takes place from Monday 16th to Friday 20th November. The theme is “Break the Silence.”
The theme was shaped directly by the voices of more than 200 children and young people, many of whom spoke about the silence that can surround bullying and the barriers young people face when asking for help. This year’s campaign encourages children, young people and adults to start conversations about bullying, to speak up, listen, and take action together.
Odd Socks Day kicks off the week on Monday 16th November. Pupils and staff wear odd socks to celebrate what makes us all unique. It’s easy to get involved with, it’s fun, and it’s a great opportunity to start important conversations about difference and kindness.
Did you know…
Teaching about bullying is a statutory requirement for all primary schools in England under the Relationships Education, RSE and Health Education guidance (DfE, July 2025), and is relevant to Ofsted inspections of pupils’ personal development and welfare.
How Can I Celebrate Anti-Bullying Week 2026?
Whether you have 10 minutes or a full week planned, Anti-Bullying Week is a chance to empower your pupils and create a culture of kindness across your school. The 2026 theme “Break the Silence” encourages every child to speak up, support others, and know they will be heard.
Here are three Break the Silence activities to celebrate Anti-Bullying Week 2026:
🗣️ The Silence Breaker Wall
Focus: Speaking up and being heard
- Create a display in your classroom or corridor called “Break the Silence.”
- Give each pupil a speech bubble template and ask them to write one kind, or supportive thing they would say to someone who has experienced bullying. This can be words of encouragement to speak up and ask for help for example.
- Responses can be anonymous. Display the speech bubbles together to show how the importance of showing kindness towards others and can use our voice to offer help.
🤝 Buddy Check-In Challenge
Focus: Looking out for others
- Pair each pupil with a “buddy” for the week.
- Each day, buddies check in with each other, a simple “How are you today?” is enough to start.
- At the end of the week, reflect as a class: How did it feel to be checked on? Did it feel easier to talk by the end of the week?
- This activity builds the habit of noticing when someone might need support and thinking about how other people feel.
📣 “I Would Speak Up If…” Scenario Cards
Focus: Building confidence to act
- Give small groups a set of scenario cards describing situations that involve conflict or bullying.
- Ask pupils to discuss: What would you do? Who would you tell? What would you say?
- Practising these responses in a safe space builds the confidence pupils need to act in real life.
- This works well as a follow-up to an assembly or as a PSHE lesson activity.
How to Plan Anti-Bullying Week in Your School
Good planning makes Anti-Bullying Week more effective and less stressful. Here is a simple five-step checklist:
Step 1 – Register as an ABA supporter and download the free Anti-Bullying Week 2026 resources from the Anti-Bullying Alliance website. These include lesson plans, assemblies, and parent/carer packs aligned to the “Break the Silence” theme.
Step 2 – Plan your assemblies. Consider a whole-school assembly to launch the week and introduce the theme. The ABA provides themed assembly materials for different key stages.
Step 3 – Choose your classroom activities. Select activities that are interactive and age-appropriate. Aim for at least one activity that gives pupils the chance to practise and discuss, not just listen.
Step 4 – Involve parents and carers. The ABA provides a free Parent and Carer Pack each year. Sharing this helps families continue conversations at home.
Step 5 – Don’t forget Odd Socks Day. Promote it in advance, take photos, and use it as a springboard for talking about celebrating difference.
🎥Short Video Guide: Anti-Bullying Week Checklist: 5 Steps to Plan an Impactful Week in Your School – OpenView Education
🎥Short Video Guide: Anti-Bullying Week Tips: 5 Ways to Make a Lasting Impact – OpenView Education
What Does Effective Anti-Bullying Education Look Like?
Research from the Youth Endowment Fund (YEF) shows that a skills-based approach is more effective than one-off awareness sessions or scare tactics. Programmes that focus on practising empathy, conflict resolution and emotion regulation produce better outcomes for young people.
This means Anti-Bullying Week activities should aim to do more than simply tell pupils that bullying is wrong. The most impactful activities:
- Give pupils the chance to practise responses to real-life scenarios
- Develop empathy by encouraging pupils to consider how others feel
- Build confidence to speak up, as a target or as a bystander
- Include follow-up so lessons continue beyond the week itself
📖 Further reading: What Works in Anti-Bullying Education? 3 Evidence-Based Strategies for Schools – OpenView Education
Free Classroom Resources for Anti-Bullying Week 2026
Here are some free resources you can use with your class:
🖼️ Free Anti-Bullying Week Posters – OpenView Education
Use these free printable posters to set the tone across your school:
- Anti-Bullying Week Poster – What Is Bullying?
- Group Chat Bullying: Poster + Practical Advice for Primary Schools
- Anti-Bullying Poster – Power for Good
- Anti-Bullying Poster – Reach Out
📋 Lesson Plans and Activities
- Anti-Bullying Lesson Plan – Reach Out Support Map – a practical activity helping pupils identify who they can talk to for support
🧠 How to Choose an Anti-Bullying Visitor for Your School
If you are thinking about booking an external workshop for Anti-Bullying Week, this guide will help you ask the right questions and choose a provider that is evidence-based and age-appropriate:
What’s Next After Anti-Bullying Week?
Anti-Bullying Week is most effective when it is part of a wider, year-round approach to building a positive school culture. Here are some ideas for keeping the momentum going:
- Display anti-bullying posters and resources in classrooms throughout the year
- Revisit what pupils learned during Anti-Bullying Week in PSHE lessons
- Build anti-bullying messages into your school’s RSHE curriculum
- Consider an Anti-Bullying Workshop for your school – a whole-school theatre show and interactive workshops that give pupils the skills to respond to bullying with confidence
Resources from the Anti-Bullying Alliance
The Anti-Bullying Alliance is the official organiser of Anti-Bullying Week. Their website has a range of free resources for schools, including:
- Free lesson plans and assembly materials for Anti-Bullying Week 2026
- A Parent and Carer Pack to support home conversations
- CPD-certified online training for school staff
- Guidance on specific types of bullying, including SEND, racist, and sexual bullying
👉 Visit the Anti-Bullying Alliance: anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk/anti-bullying-week-2026
Bring Anti-Bullying Week to Life with OpenView Education
At OpenView Education, we support primary and secondary schools across England with evidence-based anti-bullying workshops. Our whole-school programmes are designed around what the research says actually works: interactive, skills-based learning that gives every pupil the confidence to act.
Our Anti-Bullying Workshop includes:
- 🏫 Interactive workshops for every year group, from Early Years to Year 6
- 📚 Supporting lesson plans and resources for staff
- ✅ Aligned to the DfE’s statutory RSHE guidance
- 🎥 Staff Training CPD Video Course
“The most valuable part of the workshops for me was the drama and the role play. They seemed to really enjoy coming up with the solutions to the scenarios. I would say just do it, it’s well worth it — the girls learnt so much today.” – Claire Lucas, Teacher, Putney High School
👉 Book an Anti-Bullying Workshop for Your School Here
Related Workshops and Resources
- Online Safety Workshops – Digital resilience and safer choices online
- Wellbeing Workshops – Emotional regulation and self-care strategies
- Knife Crime Prevention Workshops – Early intervention through storytelling and peer pressure awareness
Sources and Further Reading
- Anti-Bullying Alliance – Anti-Bullying Week 2026: Break the Silence
- DfE – Relationships Education, RSE and Health Education Statutory Guidance (July 2025)
- Youth Endowment Fund – Social Skills Training Technical Report (2021)
- Education Endowment Foundation – Improving Social and Emotional Learning in Primary Schools
- OpenView Education Blog – What is Bullying?
