Anti-Bullying Week: A quarter of LGBT+ school pupils face cyberbullying

A quarter of LGBT+ secondary school pupils have experienced cyberbullying, according to research from LGBT+ young people’s charity Just Like Us, which has launched resources to tackle the problem.

LGBT+ young people are disproportionately affected by bullying of all forms LGBT+ pupils are twice as likely as their non-LGBT+ peers to have been bullied in the past year (43% compared to 21%).

But a quarter (24%) have experienced cyberbullying specifically, compared to 16% of non-LGBT+ pupils.

Of all LGBT+ identities, pansexual and bisexual pupils were most likely to have experienced cyberbullying (31% and 26% respectively). This is compared with 21% of young lesbians, and 14% of gay boys.

This Anti-Bullying Week (11 – 15 November), charity Just Like Ushas released free resources for primary and secondary schoolsto help raise awareness of anti-LGBT+ cyberbullying and explain how pupils can get support.

The resources, including a form time activity for secondary and a PSHE lesson for primary, include information about anti-LGBT+ cyberbullying, and how to be an ally both online and off.

Despite LGBT+ inclusion being proven to tackle bullying, half of pupils (48%) have heard little to no positive messaging at school about being LGBT+ in the last year. Justa third of LGBT+ pupils (33%) say there is a clear process for reporting anti-LGBT+ bullying in their school.

Scout, an ambassador for Just Like Us who has experienced cyberbullying at school, said: ‘For me and many other LGBT+ kids, the internet was pretty much the only place we felt safe to be our true selves. Unfortunately, bullies had the internet too. I’ve been ridiculed online almost more often than offline. The worst thing is that everyone can hide behind anonymity on the internet.

I remember hearing about other kids who were cyberbullied because of their sexuality, to the extent that they took their own lives. It’s a problem that is still steadily growing.’

Laura Mackay, Chief Executive of Just Like Us, the LGBT+ young people’s charity, said: ‘When a child is bullied online, it can be harder for the adults around them to know that it is happening. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance that LGBT+ young people feel that they are in a safe enough environment to tell a trusted adult, whether at home or at school.

We already know that the vast majority of school pupils are hearing anti-LGBT+ language. Our recent research showed that 78% of primary pupils and 80% of secondary pupils have heard homophobic language, with many reporting that its happening on TikTok. We must make sure that cyberbullying is treated with the same seriousness as bullying in the playground.

At Just Like Us, we want to equip schools with the right resources and foster an inclusive environment, so that LGBT+ pupils feel comfortable to speak up about bullying. We need to ensure that they know there are trusted adults available to support them, that there are clear processes for reporting incidents, and that their peers are able to be allies and support their friends.

We really encourage teachers to download and use our free resources on this topic – they don’t need any preparation and can help tackle this worrying trend.’