Start with the 2026 dates and theme
Anti-Bullying Week 2026 runs from Monday 16 to Friday 20 November. The Anti-Bullying Alliance theme is Break the Silence, and Odd Socks Day is Monday 16 November. Put those facts on the first slide so pupils understand why the school is gathering.
Explain the theme without suggesting that speaking is easy. Pupils may stay quiet because they feel embarrassed, fear a reaction, worry they will not be believed or do not know what adults will do. The assembly should make the first safe step clearer.
Brief staff before pupils arrive
Tell staff the main message, the fictional examples and the school reporting route before the assembly. Confirm who will be available if a pupil asks for help afterwards and how an adult should record or pass on a concern.
Do not improvise with identifiable incidents. Whole-school time is not confidential, and a familiar story may expose a pupil even when no name is used. Keep examples fictional and route personal concerns into private support.
A simple 15-minute assembly structure
Use five short parts: welcome and dates, the Break the Silence theme, what bullying is and what it is not, a fictional scenario, and the school help route. Finish by repeating one sentence pupils can use: I need to talk to someone about something that keeps happening.
Ten to fifteen minutes is enough when the message is focused. Avoid filling the assembly with several videos, long definitions or public quizzes about personal experience. Pupils should leave remembering the route, not a crowded set of slides.
Explain bullying, conflict and unkind behaviour
Bullying involves harmful behaviour where repetition or the potential for repetition and power matter. A disagreement, friendship fallout or one-off unkind action may still need adult help, but it is not automatically bullying.
Use two fictional examples and ask what information an adult would need. Make it clear that children do not have to decide the correct label before asking for help. They can describe what happened, how often, who was involved and what they are worried may happen next.
Primary assembly example
For P4-P7, use a pupil who is repeatedly excluded from a playground game and called the same unwanted nickname. Ask what a safe friend could do, what a trusted adult should notice and what the pupil might say to begin a conversation.
Include several bystander choices: do not join in, check privately with the pupil, invite them into an activity where it is safe and tell a trusted adult. Children should not be told to confront someone or solve a risky situation alone.
Include one safe online example
A simple online example might involve a group chat where a pupil is repeatedly removed, mocked or pressured to share an image. Explain that reacting, forwarding or sharing a screenshot publicly can increase the harm even when a pupil did not start it.
Tell pupils where evidence should go and who will handle it. Keeping a relevant screenshot for a trusted adult is different from circulating it among friends. The school should align this message with its online-safety and safeguarding procedures.
Plan classroom follow-up
An assembly should open the week, not carry the whole campaign. Follow it with a class activity, staff reminder, parent communication and a Friday check that asks whether pupils can explain the help route in their own words.
Use the answers as operational feedback. If pupils cannot name a trusted adult or describe what happens after reporting, repeat and simplify the route rather than assuming the campaign message was understood.
Use the live workshop as the guided centrepiece
HIP Psychology's live online P4-P7 anti-bullying workshop gives primary pupils a guided session on what bullying is, what it is not, power, conflict and safe help-seeking.
The assembly can introduce the school route before the workshop. Teachers can then reinforce the same language in class and use the primary activity guide during the rest of the week.