Anti-bullying charity, The Diana Award, and Nationwide Building Society have joined forces with celebrity stars as part of their national pen pal scheme, The Positive Post Box, to help spread positivity at a school in London and stamp out bullying.
CBBC and Strictly Come Dancing Stars, Molly Rainford and Rhys Stephenson, surprised pupils at Cranbrook Primary School, Ilford, London on 27th February, dressed as post-workers to deliver letters of positivity.
Since its launch in October 2022 following The Big Anti-Bullying Assembly, a staggering 300 schools and over 120,000 children have taken part in The Positive Post Box campaign. Those involved were invited to write messages of kindness, which would then be posted to another school via a huge ‘Special Delivery’ in January 2023.
With the big letter exchange now underway UK-wide, Samantha Patel, Year 6 teacher at Cranbrook Primary, said: “We’ve loved being part of such a fantastic project, and I think the Positive Post Box has shown the children the huge difference that being kind can make. They really got stuck into writing their letters of positivity, and they were so excited to receive the messages from another school. Having Molly and Rhys come and deliver these personally was the best surprise as well – we can’t believe how lucky we were to be chosen!”
Speaking on her role in the Special Delivery, and the wider importance of the campaign, Molly commented: “It was an honour to be asked to take part in the Special Delivery, and the look on the children’s faces absolutely made my day!”
“I can’t emphasise enough how important projects like this are to helping youngsters speak up, both for themselves and others. By encouraging this in such a creative and thought-provoking way, I think the lessons learned will be taken far beyond the classroom and into these children’s teenage and adult lives.”
Rhys added: “I’m so proud to be taking part in such a positive project. As somebody who has spoken publicly about bullying before, I will always support initiatives that spread positivity and respect. It’s been a privilege to watch the children writing and reading their letters.
“I think people underestimate the importance and significance of instilling the values of respect and compassion at a young age. Simple acts of kindness go a long way, and if children learn this whilst they’re in school, they’re far more likely to take this ethos through to later life. The Diana Award and Nationwide have done a great job to encourage this so naturally, and I hope the letter-writing continues long after the official campaign has finished.”
The initiative comes in response to recent research from Nationwide Building Society that revealed a third (32%) of children in the UK have never written a letter, but that 4 in 5 would be excited to receive one. In harnessing children’s enthusiasm for the dying art, the campaign is hopeful that it can challenge bullying and instill mutual respect from a young age, in a creative and compassionate way.
Speaking on The Positive Box campaign, Head of Advertising & Media at Nationwide Building Society, Paul Hibbs, commented: “The work we are doing with The Diana Award to promote mutual respect and to tackle bullying head on by spreading messages of positivity is hugely important.
“The stats on bullying are worrying, so anything we can do to combat the root of the problem is vital, and that’s what we hope to do with this partnership. We want to show children who may be suffering they’re not alone, too. At Nationwide, mutual respect has always been a core value to us, so we are incredibly proud to be able to drive such a positive message and promote equality, respect and inclusivity in society.”
Deputy CEO of The Diana Award, Alex Holmes, added: “On the back of our annual Big Anti-Bullying Assembly with Nationwide Building Society which took place in October, it’s been great to be part of this brand-new initiative which encourages kindness through the revival of letter writing.
“Simple written messages of kindness can have a positive impact on both the sender and receiver. At The Diana Award we’re passionate about tackling negative behaviours by empowering young people to make change. We’ve loved seeing young people across the country putting pen to paper and sending their messages already and can’t wait to see many more positive messages.”
Alongside this campaign, Nationwide Building Society is working with The Diana Award to train an extra 10,000 Anti-Bullying Ambassadors in over 660 primary schools across the UK within their three-year partnership. Through this initiative, school children can develop key skills around tackling bullying, celebrating difference and supporting their peers, online and offline.
