Emma-Jane Cross is the Chief Executive of Beatbullying, an association founded in 1999 to empower young people leading anti-bullying campaigns in their schools and communities.?In the last 5 years Beatbullying has worked directly and indirectly with about 700,000 young people. The work involves assisting and supporting those who are being bullied, re-educating and changing the behaviour of bullies and preventing bullying in schools and communities across the UK.
How does Beatbullying work?
The Beatbullying programme utilises and implements Peer Activism : empower students to campaign and decision-make to ensure their school is a safer. Beatbullying’s highly expert Development Officers, utilise myriad mediums to engage young people including sport, new media, life and campaigning skills training, drama and music.
What would you say are the main challenges faced by civil society in the UK today?
The facts are that Young Britons don’t trust their peers. They don’t feel respected. They don’t talk to their parents. They take too many risks with their sexual and mental health. It’s 30 years since a culture of fear and blame began to percolate through UK society. Millions of kids, despite constant demonization, live positive lives; they work hard and do well at school. We are just choosing not to listen, not to notice and not to learn.
What is your opinion about the third sector in the UK?
That the competition is fierce, the stakes are high, sometimes the morals are low, that together we glue the very social fabric of this country together. Coalition is on occasion brilliant, but just as often disastrous, that we should be allowed to disagree without funders having a hissy fit.
I also think that volunteers are the bedrock of this industry, that service users have the answers if we just choose to listen.
What dealings, if any, does your organisation have with third sector organisations in other European countries?
None and that saddens me. Over the last 4 years, BB (BeatBullying) has approached probably 10 European third sector organisations attending to start a dialogue about European funding, partnerships, twinning or best practice and no one was interested. Yet U.S. organisations and Beatbullying are working brilliantly together.
What advice would you give to a young person wanting to make a career in the third sector?
Bring your enthusiasm, your sense of justice, your energy and your hope and you will be just fine, and above all you will be able to look yourself in the mirror knowing you are making a contribution
Do you have a particularly interesting or favorite website to suggest to our readers?
