‘No Bystanders’ campaign

This week Chief Constable Simon Byrne, Deputy Chief Constable Janette McCormick and Police and Crime Commissioner John Dwyer have signed up to the Stonewall campaign ‘No Bystanders’ which encourages people to stand up to any form of bullying or abuse be it related to gender, sexuality, race, religion, disability, age, weight or any other differences.

Stonewall is a charity which works to promote equality for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LBGT) community however this campaign is aimed at all people who suffer from abuse or bullying.

The ‘No Bystanders’ campaign is described as being about individuals and organisations having a responsibility to make Britain a country where every child grows up able to be themselves.

Chief Constable Simon Byrne said; “At Cheshire Police we want our staff to be able to feel that they are treated with respect by the constabulary no matter what their differences.  This is reflected in the Force Code of Ethics which sets the standards for all those who work for us.  Respect and fairness are two of the key attributes in the Code and we expect all officers and staff to lead by example.

“It is important that we employ people who understand the importance of respecting diversity to ensure that they treat any members of the public they deal with fairly and with respect no matter what their background or situation.

“By signing up to this campaign we are saying that we will stand up to anyone who we witness falling below the high standards that the Constabulary expects whether that be members of the public we deal with or our own officers and staff.”

ACC Janette McCormick commented; “We all have a responsibility for treating those around us with respect and fairness.  There is never an excuse to bully or abuse another person be it someone we work with, someone we meet in the street or a friend or relative.”

More information about the campaign can be found on the Stonewall website – http://www.stonewall.org.uk/what_we_do/9511.asp which also has a powerful video highlighting some of the issues.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agLrVvCUkzI