In a glittering ceremony at the Millennium Stadium last wwek, that was attended by Cardiff City footballers Tom Heaton and Robert Earnshaw, the names of the people who have made a difference in the lives of others through their support and friendship were revealed.
Now in its third year, the awards scheme is co-ordinated by Cardiff Against Bullying (CAB), Cardiff Council’s anti-bullying team, who work in partnership with schools, charities, the Police, parents and young people to support those experiencing bullying or bullying others. The awards are a fantastic way to say thank you to people who have made a difference and enhanced the lives of a friend, peer, pupil or colleague.
St Illtyd’s pupil Kelly Harrison was named the overall winner in the secondary school, 11 to 15-years-old category. Kelly has herself experienced bullying and for a number of years, dealt with the matter on her own. Recently she took the courageous step to seek help to deal with her experiences and she is now looking to train as a mentor to help others.
Cathays High School students Alice Fogarty, Caitlin O’ Connor and Ryan Webber and Sam Hill of Fitzalan High were all finalists in this category.
Ysgol Gyfun Plasmawr’s Gareth Jones took the honours in the 16 to 18-years-old secondary school category while Cathays High’s Alexandra Claridge was a finalist.
Gareth has been trained to lead groups of young pupils who require support to develop their self-esteem and self-worth and has been key in the development of the project in school as well as other areas across Cardiff. He has carried out extensive voluntary work with younger pupils and the elderly at a local care home and is soon due to travel to Lesotho to work with pupils with special educational needs in a school that has links with Plasmawr. His contribution to his school and community has been priceless.
Plasmawr also scooped the plaudits in the teacher/teaching staff category with senior teacher Siriol Burford winning the award. Mrs Burford has overall responsibility for the wellbeing of school staff and pupils at Plasmawr, working closely with families in crisis and frequently going out of her way to ensure every pupil is able to cope and succeed in school. She implements innovative and contemporary programmes and plans into school life which are used as good practice within Cardiff and nationally including the peer support project, ‘Merched Mentus’ (Venturesome Girls), ‘Bechgyn Bonheddig’ (Noble/Gentlemanly Boys) and a programme for parents.
Rumney High’s Sue Gandy, Sonia Price of Oakfield Primary, Jackie Dawe of Bryn Celyn Primary, Radyr Comprehensive School’s Nina Evans, Jodie Duggan of St Teilo’s High and Dave Wikeley from the Council’s behaviour support service were all finalists in this category.
South Wales Police Inspector Alan Heatley of the Eastern Basic Command Unit was the winner of the Inspire Award in the community representative category having championed the needs of young people across Cardiff for the past two years. Alan has spearheaded changes in attitudes amongst colleagues for restorative solutions for young people, deterring them from entering the criminal justice system and seeking support to address needs that have allowed them to return back to school or learning.
Finalists in the community representative category were the Bullies Out community volunteer team and Dave Riddell and Dave Edwards of the Council’s virtual inclusion programme.
Executive Member for Education and Lifelong Learning, Cllr Freda Salway, said: “Many congratulations to all the winners and finalists in this year’s Inspire Awards. The calibre of this year’s nominees has been extremely high once again which means there is some fantastic work going on at all levels in the city to help counter the problem of bullying.
“We take the issue of bullying extremely seriously but there is a wealth of support out there for children and young people so there is no need to suffer in silence. I hope another successful year of the Inspire Awards, as this has been, will be an encouragement to come forward to both those who are victims of bullying and want to discuss their problems and those who are willing to help others and offer support and friendship.”
