OP student recognised for work on bullying

Otago Polytechnic nursing student, Ashleigh Smith, is firmly focused on eliminating bullying in New Zealand schools and communities, and has received a 2016 Youth Week Award for her efforts. The awards recognise and celebrate the outstanding contributions that young people make to our community.

The 18-year- old Ashleigh is a co-leader of the anti-bullying group, Sticks ’n’ Stones, formed in 2013 in Central Otago. The group differs from other anti-bullying programmes in that it is completely student-led with more than 300 students aged 11-18 involved. The programme is now extending into some Dunedin high schools and has even started working with a school in Auckland.

“Traditional bullying programmes often send in someone to talk to a big group of students in a one-off situation, but that is only effective for a few days,” Ashleigh explains. “Also, there was a generation gap issue with some of the adults – one of the biggest challenges today is the cyber world and social media.”

She feels greatly humbled to have received a 2016 Youth Week Award for her work. “There are so many amazing young people across New Zealand doing amazing things, I was surprised to receive an award,” she says. “While I have my own skills, every person involved in Sticks ’n’ Stones makes it the model that it is today.”

Sticks ’n’ Stones involves students using their own experiences to help other students.

“That’s the basis of what we do – helping older students be role models for younger students. It’s about being ambassadors, and about our ambassadors learning to stand up and take responsibility for their own behaviours.”

Ashleigh was motivated to join the group after a spate of suicides in the Maniototo where she grew up. “The tragedy and the effect that had on our lives really drove me to stand up for this issue – it’s really important that we talk about this. The effects of being bullied as a teenager can continue throughout someone’s life.”

Ashleigh and other group members recently travelled to a conference in Dublin to present their own research into the effectiveness of the student-led approach towards bullying.

“We stopped off in London first to meet with the UK Anti-bullying Alliance. They work closely with other organisations, and that’s something we would love to do here in New They also met with members of the Diana Award, a trust fund set up in honour of Princess Diana. As part of their work, members provide feedback to the Dublin office of Facebook, which is in charge of Facebook in Europe and the UK. “We’re now looking at the possibility of setting up the same programme for New Zealand and Australia – allowing youth to give feedback on Facebook’s policies,” says Ashleigh.

Ultimately, Ashleigh is keen to expand her own scope, through her nursing practice, to increase the focus on mental health in New Zealand.

-ENDS-

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