Nominet Trust helps young people to BeatBullying

CyberMentors, an award-winning anti-bullying website, funded and supported by the Nominet Trust, and developed by children’s charity BeatBullying, is being relaunched today.

The CyberMentors site has been redesigned to make it easier for its users - young people who might be being bullied or who are depressed or troubled - to chat to each other and access help and advice from trained counsellors. A new ‘I need help’ button has been added, enabling young people to ask directly for help from trained professionals - along with an improved information section aimed at teachers and parents. The changes to the site will also mean that

CyberMentors’ trained moderators can improve the way they assess and respond to young people using the site, which will in turn lead to improved safeguarding.

In addition, all site content has been updated, though the distinctive CyberMentors look and feel has been largely retained. The redesign has been carried out by CyberMentors’ in-house team, and young people have been involved in every stage of the process - from initial design to testing.

CyberMentors was originally launched in March 2009, funded by the Nominet Trust. It trains young people to help each other, bringing together an online network of peer mentors and professionals, on hand to offer guidance and support to young people facing bullying, or who are depressed.

Since 2009, over 1.7m unique users have visited the CyberMentors website, and over one million interactions between site users and trained volunteer peer mentors have taken place. On average, following involvement with CyberMentors, bullying, harassment and antisocial behaviour are reduced by 40 per cent, and 72 per cent of young people report improved wellbeing. In 2010 CyberMentors received a Nominet Award for making the internet safer.

Visit www.cybermentors.org.uk to find out more