Leamington College student who became Miss Teen Rugby speaks out about her experience of being bullied

A student who set her sights on becoming Miss Teen Great Britain has been sharing her experiences of bullying with classmates at Royal Leamington Spa College.

Keelie Fowkes, 17, has been speaking with her peers at the college, which is part of WCG (formerly Warwickshire College Group) as part of Anti-Bullying Week.

As a victim of bullying at secondary school, the Level 3 Health and Social Care student is motivated to use her experiences to raise awareness of the problems that can beset victims subjected to bullying in the classroom and on the playground.

Keelie, who lives in Coventry, has raised over £300 for Bullies Out, an anti-bullying charity based in Wales which runs Anti-Bullying Week from 14-18 November.

She’s climbed Snowdon as part of her fundraising mission, as well as holding a charity photoshoot.

Keelie competed in the Miss Teen Great Britain 2022 contest, where, as Miss Teen Rugby, she faced against other 16 to 19-year-olds from across the country for the chance to become the UK’s teen pageantry queen.

She finished in the top 20 in the nationwide competition. Keelie is now set to compete in Miss Teen Pageant Girl UK in Manchester in July, and will be hosting a range of fundraising events ahead of the pageant – with aims to raise £1,000 for anti-bullying charity BulliesOut.

Keelie said: “To go from never standing up in front of an audience before to twice in quick succession at the Miss Teen Great Britain contest and in front of my classmates to deliver a bullying talk is a challenge and a little nerve wracking, but I wanted to do this.

“I enjoyed not only speaking with my classmates, but also delivering the anti-bullying message and discussing how I’m moving on with my life.

“I’m in a much better place now compared to where I was back then, and am really enjoying my involvement in pageantry and supporting Bullies Out as much as I can.

“Finding schools that support me, show genuine empathy and care about my situation has been problematic, so I’d like to thank the college helping me to enjoy student life again.

“Through their support for Anti-Bullying Week, it’s clear that WCG wants to lead from the front and ensure bullying does not take place on its campuses across Warwickshire.”

Sam Wehby, Personal Learning Advisor at WCG, said: “We’re proud to support Anti Bullying Week. It’s an incredibly important initiative, and we’re blessed to have a pupil like Keelie, who belies her years by wanting to talk about such a difficult subject and to bravely share her experience of bullying – which should not be tolerated anywhere in society.

“To have Keelie presenting to her fellow classmates sends an incredibly powerful and important message to students. She’s lived it, come out the other side and is now engaged in some really positive and outstanding work with a charity that operates far outside Coventry and Warwickshire. She should be incredibly proud of herself. I know we are.”

To find out more about WCG’s harassment and bullying policy, visit https://wcg.ac.uk/page/462/harassment-and-bullying.

Discover Bullies Out’s work, and access their primary and secondary school learning resources for Anti-Bullying Week 2022 at https://bulliesout.com/.