FOR SCHOOLS
Empower young people to challenge misogyny and build better relationships
A comprehensive spiral curriculum bridging Years 6 through 9, with extra support for the crucial phase of transition to secondary.
Supporting the next generation
Step In for Schools enables learning about vital issues, such as setting boundaries, misogyny and consent.
Evidence-based and grounded in behavioural research, this comprehensive school programme is designed to drive real and measurable changes in how students think and act.
Spanning both primary and secondary school through a spiral curriculum, Step In ensures students build a solid understanding of the key issues and a lifelong toolkit of respectful and anti-sexist behaviours.
User-friendly
Step In gives teachers an easy-to-use set of resources that enables them to deliver high-quality lessons at every stage.
The Step In for Schools programme was co-produced with school staff, so it fits naturally into existing curricula. Lessons were tested with students to ensure that they speak directly to their real experiences.
Step In has been designed to align with updated statutory RSHE guidance — including a focus on misogynistic online content and tackling harmful stereotypes — and strengthens schools' safeguarding duties by helping students recognise, report, and prevent peer-on-peer abuse, both online and offline.
The classroom materials are invaluable for engaging students in issues of misogyny and harassment.’
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What’s available?
Primary – year 6
Primary assembly, ‘taster session’
Slide deck – year 6, five lessons
Teacher handbook, year 6
Parent letter
Achievement certificate
Transition to Secondary
Step Into Secondary
Digital resource
Student-facing presentation
Parent-facing presentation
Secondary – years 7-9
Secondary assembly, ‘taster session’
Slide deck – year 7, ten lessons
Slide deck – year 8, ten lessons
Slide deck – year 9, ten lessons
Teacher handbook, years 7-9
Parent letter
Achievement certificate
Primary, year 6
In the course of this taster session and five lessons, Year 6 students learn about personal safety, growing independence, and respectful behaviour as students prepare for secondary school.
Using realistic scenarios, the lesson plans open up conversations about boundaries and harmful behaviours – including harassment and sexist bullying – as well as the importance of reporting and speaking up.
Printable handouts to use in specific lesson activities are provided alongside the slide deck.
Primary assembly, ‘taster session’
Our assembly slide deck for primary school children in Year 6 offers an introduction to key messages of the Step In programme. Designed for a 30-minute session, it kickstarts conversations about respect and discrimination, and offers students simple steps to help when witnessing harmful behaviours.
Primary slide deck
The primary slide deck includes all key lesson visuals plus handouts to use in specific lesson activities.
Primary teacher handbook
Our teacher handbook accompanies the slide deck for Year 6. In addition to lesson overviews and key messages, it includes advice and background information to build teacher confidence and provide guidance around anti-misogynist school culture.
Achievement certificate
The printable Step In student certificate recognises and celebrates students' learning and participation in the Step In Programme. Teachers can customise the template easily with their school logo, as well as student names and year group.
Primary parent letter
This parent letter template makes it easy to inform parents of your school's delivery of the Step In programme. Each template addresses key questions around programme content, age-appropriateness, and student safety - championing transparency and providing reassurance.
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Transition to Secondary School – ‘Step Into Secondary’
Step into Secondary is a practical resource designed to boost children's confidence during the transition period.
Exploring six scenarios with the help of conversation starter questions, children learn how to approach tricky situations that they might encounter at secondary school. The resource can be used by parents with their children at home, or during transition activities at school.
Step Into Secondary - key resource
A downloadable PDF resource for parents and teachers, enabling them to explore tricky situations with young people that they might experience at secondary school.
Step Into Secondary - for Parents
The transition to secondary school can be a challenging time for parents and carers too. The slide deck can be used during a coffee morning or parents' evening to explore parents' own feelings and concerns, offering practical guidance on how parents can support a safe and positive transition for their child.
Step Into Secondary - for Students
This presentation summarises key messages from the Step Into Secondary resource in a digestible format and is ready to use during a Year 6 lesson or assembly.
With the help of discussion questions and realistic scenarios, students explore how to stay safe and respectful in situations that may be new to them.
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Secondary, years 7-9
Covering Years 7–9, the secondary school slide deck comprises 10 lessons per year group. The lessons introduce the topics of misogyny and sexual harassment.
Drawing on examples from both online and offline contexts, the content uses scenarios and discussion points that resonate with young people. Printable handouts to use in specific lesson activities are provided alongside the slide deck.
Secondary students were involved in co-creating key Step In resources.
Assembly for secondary students, ‘Taster session’
Our secondary assembly deck is suitable for students in Key Stage 3. It offers a taster for the overall Step In programme, with a focus on how young people can tackle inequality and disrespectful behaviours, while fostering a sense of responsibility and self-efficacy.
Secondary slide deck, years 7-9
The secondary school slide deck comprises 10 lessons per year group and introduces topics including misogyny and sexual harassment.
Drawing on examples from both online and offline contexts, each lesson uses scenarios and discussion points that resonate with young people.
Printable handouts to use in specific lesson activities are provided alongside the slide deck.
Secondary teacher handbook
The teacher handbook accompanies the slide deck and provides key messages and valuable guidance around issues of concern to teachers, including safeguarding, creating safe spaces for discussing sensitive issues, and embedding a whole-school approach to anti-sexism.
Achievement certificate
The printable Step In student certificate recognises and celebrates students' learning and participation in the Step In Programme. Teachers can customise the template easily with their school logo, as well as student names and year group.
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Sample video
Step In advocate and youth worker Gavin McKenna meets up with his long-standing friend and fellow youth worker Shae to learn more about womens’ safety and their experiences of harassment and misogyny.
‘Our children benefited greatly from Step In, which gave them tools and vocabulary to discuss and resolve issues around friendship and boundaries. The focus on online behaviours was particularly powerful as it provided a safe space within school for children share their concerns.
The positive impact of this project has reached beyond the classroom into the wider school community.’
Feedback from a Year 6 teaching team
FAQs
Step In for Schools
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Step In has two major parts – a Bystander training component and an schools-based learning component, called Step In for Schools.
Step In Bystander training is a simplified, memorable and actionable approach to giving people the confidence to step in safely when they see someone being harassed.
Step In for Schools is an evidence-based education programme designed to help students understand important issues including boundaries, misogyny, consent, and respectful behaviour. Grounded in behavioural research, the programme supports real and measurable change in how young people think, behave, and respond to harmful attitudes and behaviours.
Designed for both primary and secondary schools, Step In uses a spiral curriculum approach to build students’ understanding over time and support the development of lifelong respectful and anti-sexist behaviours
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While outcomes will vary depending on your school and community context, the Step In pilot in Redbridge showed encouraging early results.
Students who took part demonstrated greater awareness of sexism and misogyny, along with stronger understanding of how to respond as a bystander. Participating schools also saw increased reporting of sexist incidents, often viewed as a positive early indicator of improved awareness and confidence to speak up. Teachers responded positively to the classroom resources, and students showed strong recall of key messages and behaviours promoted through the programme.
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Yes.
All Step In resources are available free of charge to support those committed to creating safer communities.
We ask you to register before downloading, so we can:
Understand who the resources are reaching
Share relevant updates or new materials
Provide implementation guidance and/ or personalisation where appropriate
Build a community of people working to tackle misogyny and VAWG.
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By signing up to download these resources, you agree that your name and email address will be collected and stored by Social Engine.
This information may be used to:
Provide access to the requested resources
Share updates about the This Has to STOP Toolkit
Send relevant information, guidance, or follow-up support related to implementation
Understand how the resources are being used across different settings
Your data will not be sold to or shared with third parties.
Please read our Terms & conditions and Social Engine’s Privacy Policy.
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Step In uses a carefully designed spiral curriculum to ensure sensitive topics are introduced in an age-appropriate, safe, and structured way. Spanning Years 6-9, the programme supports students through key stages of development, from Year 6 in primary school, through transition to secondary school, and into Years 7-9.
The Primary and Secondary Teacher handbooks provided offer guidance on how to handle sensitive topics in the classroom.
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Step In has been designed to draw on best practice in engaging boys and young men in the prevention of sexual violence and harmful behaviour.
Lessons explore topics that are relevant to all young people, including online influences, gender stereotypes, respectful relationships, and allyship. The programme uses relatable examples throughout, with a focus on positive male role models for young men, and real-life scenarios that students can recognise from their own experiences, including gaming, sport, and social media.
Rather than blaming or shaming, Step In encourages empathy, critical thinking, and healthy discussion. The aim is to help students build the confidence and skills to recognise harmful behaviour, support others, and have respectful conversations about difficult topics.
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Yes. Step In is designed to be suitable for both mixed-gender and single-gender school settings.
The programme focuses on respectful behaviour, healthy boundaries, consent, and challenging harmful attitudes and behaviours in an age-appropriate and inclusive way. Resources can be adapted to reflect the needs and context of different school communities.
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We understand that topics such as sexism, misogyny and violence against women and girls can feel sensitive for some parents and carers. Student safety and wellbeing are at the heart of Step In, and all content is designed to be age-appropriate, educational and grounded in encouraging open and respectful communication as well as early prevention.
To support schools with transparency, parent/carer information letters for both primary and Secondary settings can be downloaded via our resources page. These letters explain the content and aims of the programme, to ensure parents and carers feel fully informed.
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The five Year 6 sessions are 45 minutes each.
The lessons for y7-9 are planned for 30 minutes each.
Schools can choose their own schedule to best suit their needs – whether teaching weekly, every day for two weeks, or using the material for drop-down days. We recommend delivering lessons on a regular schedule, with no more than two weeks between sessions, as each lesson builds on previous learning.
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Our toolkit provides all materials necessary to deliver the sessions. Teachers delivering this content do not need specialist knowledge but do need ability to hold space for sensitive conversations and lead students through discussions that can spark emotions or be controversial.
Staff also need to be familiar with reporting policies in case of disclosures, and need to feel confident with ways to handle these. We recommend that all teachers delivering the programme read through the handbook available. Where possible, it can be useful for the PSHE lead, DSL or other teaching staff to help familiarise delivering teachers with the programme.
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While Step In has been designed for schools, the programme can also be used in other youth and educational settings, including youth clubs and community groups.
As the lessons build on previous learning, the programme works best in settings where young people meet regularly. Multiple sessions can also be delivered together where needed.
For organisations looking for a shorter or standalone session for young people aged 13+, our Active Bystander Workshop may be more suitable.