Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jul 15

We recently talked to school staff about weight-related bullying (WRB) in schools - here's what they told us:
- WRB should be included in bullying policies
- WRB is probably under-reported
- Staff want training and support on this issue

Read more here:
arc-w.nihr.ac.uk/news/what-do...

What do school staff think about weight-related bullying in schools? Reflections on Catalyst Award conversations - ARC West

Dr Lis Grey and Dr Beki Langford received a University of Bristol Knowledge Mobilisation Catalyst Award to talk to secondary school teachers about their work on weight-related bullying. Here’s what th...

arc-w.nihr.ac.uk

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Reposted by Beki Langford

NIHR Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) West @arc-west.bsky.social · Jul 14

Lis Grey and @bekilangford.bsky.social received a @bristoluni.bsky.social Knowledge Mobilisation Catalyst Award to talk to secondary school teachers about their work on weight-related bullying. Read their blog to find out what they discovered.

arc-w.nihr.ac.uk/what-do-scho...

What do school staff think about weight-related bullying in schools? Reflections on Catalyst Award conversations - ARC West

Dr Lis Grey and Dr Beki Langford received a University of Bristol Knowledge Mobilisation Catalyst Award to talk to secondary school teachers about their work on weight-related bullying. Here’s what th...

arc-w.nihr.ac.uk

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jul 10

Am hoping to apply for some research funding but the call opens end of July and closes end of Sep.

1. My work is with schools and this call opens exactly as schools close for summer
2. Those of us with kids are facing a stressful 6 weeks of juggling childcare while working

Not ideal!

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jul 7

Attending @wolfsoncentre.bsky.social's young people's mental health summer school.

Interesting talk from Prof Stephan Collishaw.

Key take aways: there really is a worrying increase in prevalence of MH problems in young people (not just a reporting issue) and outcomes are getting worse.

a neon sign that says attention on a black background

ALT: a neon sign that says attention on a black background

media.tenor.com

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jul 2

Come and work with us!

We're looking for a qualitative or mixed-methods researcher to help evaluate the Why Weight Pledge - a whole systems approach to creating healthier places and tackling weight stigma.

Details here: bit.ly/4lbBWYs

Please share!

Details | Working at Bristol | University of Bristol

University of Bristol Beacon House Queens Road Bristol, BS8 1QU, UK Tel: +44 (0)117 928 9000 Contact us

bit.ly

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 26

In the fields of sport, entertainment, broadcasting, science, politics, literature, journalism and academia, you couldn't find one exceptional woman?

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 20

Birthday dip, stunning setting

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 18

Wow, @oliwilliams.bsky.social this looks SO good! Already looking forward to reading the chapters on body facism and your one on the use of stigma in public health.

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 12

Oh my!

Matthew B @matthewbroome.bsky.social · Jun 12

Italian conferences

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 12

Have a great time and say hi to everyone for me - so nice for you to be in the same room (and time zone!) for a change!

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Reposted by Beki Langford

Prof Nisreen Alwan @nisreenalwan.bsky.social · Jun 11

Amazing funded opportunity to apply to do a PhD with us on food insecurity!
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

Addressing food insecurity through better food aid and improved collaboration at University of Southampton on FindAPhD.com

PhD Project - Addressing food insecurity through better food aid and improved collaboration at University of Southampton, listed on FindAPhD.com

www.findaphd.com

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Reposted by Beki Langford

DECIPHer @deciphercentre.bsky.social · Jun 5

🔊 Please share!

Vacancy: Research Associate - behavioural research and public health

Work within DECIPHer and the ESRC-funded leadership hub @behaviourresuk.bsky.social.

Closing date: Thursday, 19 June 2025

More details and apply here 👉 bit.ly/43pG0hh

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 11

Totally this! Just keep reminding myself that humans are incredibly bad at predicting future outcomes in complex systems. It may all seem bleak but we really don't know what's going to happen so we might as well...

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 4

Over 20% of Bristol's children live in income deprived household

Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 4

Presenting some of our work on weight related bullying at the Population Health Science Institute annual symposium today.
@bristoluni.bsky.social

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 4

Since breaking my ankle last month I've had to use buses instead of cycle everywhere.

Currently stuck in heavy traffic and going to be late for a meeting.

Cannot wait to get back to my bike to avoid this inconvenience and expense!

#BikeLife #ActiveTravel

a green bicycle with a red heart that says me + my bike on it

Alt: a green bicycle with a red heart that says me + my bike on it

media.tenor.com

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 3

I think I've just found a blind spot in school anti-bullying policies.

Read my blog here: arc-w.nihr.ac.uk/news/i-think...

I think I’ve just found a blind spot in school anti-bullying policies - ARC West

Dr Beki Langford is a Lecturer in Public Mental Health at the University of Bristol. She has been looking at school bullying policies to see if they address weight-related bullying as part of a projec...

arc-w.nihr.ac.uk

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 3

I knew I'd forget someone! And Georgie MacArthur!

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 3

And one extra!

Great to work with fab people on this project: Mandy Hughes, Lis Grey, Fiona Gillison, Caoimhe Gowran, Fayth Shepherd and Alice Haigherty.

@arc-west.bsky.social

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 3

Read the whole paper here: pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
The press release here: bit.ly/4dJKov3
And my blog about this researcher here: bit.ly/3HoJlob
8/8

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 3

We're calling on schools to explicitly include weight-related bullying in their policies — and to consider how they can put this into practice — so that no pupil is bullied because of their weight.
7/8

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 3

Mentioning weight in policies matters.
US data shows that anti-bullying laws that specifically mention weight are linked to lower rates of victimisation. But when policies only refer to appearance in general, there's no such effect.
6/8

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 3

Bullying in relation to appearance was mentioned by about half the policies. And while this might include weight, it also covers a whole range of over things too, like height, hair colour, clothing, wearing glasses.
5/8

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 3

Most policies focused on protected characteristics — even those less relevant to pupils. Bullying linked to age or pregnancy was mentioned twice as often (14%) as weight. And 7% mentioned marital status — even though it's illegal to marry under 18 in the UK.
4/8

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Beki Langford @bekilangford.bsky.social · Jun 3

We reviewed the anti-bullying policies of 250+ local south west secondary schools. Private schools were most likely to mention weight-related bullying (n=40, 18%), followed by mainstream state schools (n=148, 7%). No special schools (state or private, n=67) mentioned it at all.
3/8

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