Staff and student unions at the University of Portsmouth have recently come together to produce the booklet 'No bullying in Our University'.
The University and College Union, Unison and the University of Portsmouth Students' Union pooled their resources to produce the guide, which offers invaluable advice on identifying bullying, its symptoms, where to find support and how a staff member or student can cope if he or she is being bullied.
With a foreword by bullying expert Professor Charlotte Rayner, the book has been illustrated beautifully by UCU branch secretary Louise Allen.
Louise told CUSN recently: "I had previously been through an experience of being bullied at work and drew on my experience in terms of how I felt and what happened and interviewed a number of other victims.
"I do have a personal belief that to address problems such as bullying we must use culture and avoid black and white, corporate style documentation and communication, as it does not help people feel better."
"So far the response has been amazing. Staff love the book as it's easy to use and friendly. One of the comments has been that it gives people the confidence to feel bullied rather than frightened and guilty."
Here are some extracts from the book:
- "Bullying can happen to anyone at any stage in his or her life…If you are being bullied, it is not your fault."
- "If you are being bullied, it is not your job to know why you are being bullied."
- "You are only human and all of these symptoms are your body and mind reacting to and coping with the stress of dealing with bullying. If you are suffering from these symptoms it is time to do something about it."
At the College and University Support Network, we regularly support staff members in adult, further and higher education that are experiencing bullying. We're really happy that Louise and the unions at Portsmouth have produced their booklet. It will appear online soon; we'll let you know when it's available and hope that it can help with anti-bullying efforts at other organisations.
Remember that we are here for you 24/7, every day of the year either via our website www.cusn.info or by calling the Support Line on 08000 32 99 52.
In the meantime, why not look at the following factsheets?
