Anti-bullying group to hold rally in region

Bikes Against Bullies, a new organisation, is holding an inaugural rally at St Mary’s Loch, north of Ettrick, on Sunday September 11.

Five parties of motorcyclists will gather at the loch, at the Glen Café, at about 3pm after setting off from three locations in England and two in Scotland.

One set of English bikers will be coming up from Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria, the home of group founder Chris Cooper, and the others will depart from Penrith, also in Cumbria, and Morecambe in Lancashire.

The Scottish bikers will be coming from Prestwick and Edinburgh.

For further details, go to www.bikesagainstbullies.co.uk

Paul Miller, a member of the Christian Motorcyclists Association, will lead a prayer service for people driven by bullying to commit suicide.

A collection will be taken in aid of Stand Up to Bullying.

A spokesman for Bikes Against Bullies said: “We are a group set up for anyone who wishes to be involved to create awareness surrounding bullying and to offer support to victims and families.

“It just so happens that most of us ride motorcycles as a form of transport. We are not limited to motorcyclists and families are more than welcome to join.

“Anyone joining will be actively encouraged to help in what ever way they can as we feel our children deserve to be safe, to be supported, empowered and to live their lives with out fear.

“We intend to adjust the help offered to each individual person who approaches us based on their needs.

“Many of our members or their families have personal stories which support the statistics that more than 43% of children have been reported to have been affected by bullying at some point in their lives, with 44% of those children suffering ongoing bullying more than once a week.