Break the silence for Anti-Bullying Week

The Anti-Bullying Alliance (ABA) is the official organiser of Anti-Bullying Week and Odd Socks Day in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

Anti-Bullying Week 2026 will take place 16-20th November with the theme: Break the Silence.

This year’s campaign - Break the Silence - will encourage children, young people and adults across the UK to start conversations about bullying, speak up, listen and take action together.

The theme was developed in collaboration with the anti-bullying sector and 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 in asking for help.

Organised by the Anti-Bullying Alliance, which is coordinated by leading children’s charity the National Children’s Bureau, Anti-Bullying Week has become one of the largest children’s wellbeing campaigns in the UK, reaching an estimated 8 million children and young people and over 80% of schools each year.

Millions of children and young people experience bullying every year. Many never tell anyone.

They stay silent when they are being bullied, when they see it happening, and sometimes when they feel drawn into it themselves. When silence persists, bullying can grow.

In today’s world, bullying can happen in new and more complex ways. It happens face to face, online, and through new technologies. And in a world that can feel more divided and less kind, young people feel the impact.

But we can change that. When people come together, speak openly, and choose kindness, bullying loses its power. Every conversation, every act of support, and every voice raised against bullying makes a difference.

This Anti-Bullying Week, the ABA is encouraging everyone to start the conversation about bullying. It is calling on children and young people to speak up and share their experiences, and on adults to listen, support, and act.

Across schools, communities, and organisations, people will come together to take meaningful action against bullying and create kinder, more supportive environment where all children and young people belong.

Join the ABA this November for Anti-Bullying Week 2026: Break the Silence.

How can you Break the Silence?

As part of the campaign, free resources for schools, parents, carers and organisations have been released in the lead up to the week, including films, lesson plans, assemblies, activities and discussion tools. The ABA has also developed a media, social media and community-based campaign to help bring Anti-Bullying Week to life whether you're at home, work or in school.

Anti-Bullying Alliance patron, CBBC and CBeebies star Andy Day will lead celebrity support for the campaign, with his band Andy and the Odd Socks. The band have released a toe-tapping song to mark Odd Socks Day on the first day of Anti-Bullying Week.

There’s a serious message behind the fun: let’s pull on odd socks to show we’re ALL unique and different, and let’s be kind to each other and respect each other’s individuality.