EAST Sussex County Council has teamed up with a leading charity to develop support for young people at risk of homophobic bullying.
The county council's anti-bullying team has marked LGBT History Month (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) by teaming up with Stonewall, a charity which campaigns for gay equality and has signed up to become Stonewall Education Champions.
As St
onewall Education Champions, the anti-bullying team will work with the charity over two years to help educate and inform young people whilst tackling the root of homophobic bullying.
It will also work with other champions including school and youth groups across the county.
They will look at what support is already on offer and how this can be added to.
Councillor Meg Stroude, East Sussex County Council's Lead Member for Children and Families, said, "All our young people have the right to attend schools and youth clubs without the fear of being bullied or discriminated against.
"It is not just gay and lesbian young people who experience homophobic bullying and using sexual preference as an insult is both cowardly and ignorant.
"Everyone should be offended by this sort of bullying and is not something that is welcome in East Sussex."
LGBT Month, held every February, celebrates the lives and achievements of the LGBT community.
The anti-bullying team is using this opportunity to talk to schools about LGBT issues and build on the work they already do to help young people understand the issues surrounding sexuality and address any problems or worries they may have.
For more details about the anti-bullying team, visit the website www.eastsussex.gov.uk/bullying
