A campaign to combat cyber bullying has been launched. The campaign, which aims to make children more aware of the impact abusive text and email messages can have on victims, was launched today (Monday) by Herts Police. Officers have targeted school

A campaign to combat cyber bullying has been launched.

The campaign, which aims to make children more aware of the impact abusive text and email messages can have on victims, was launched today (Monday) by Herts Police.

Officers have targeted schools across North Herts with posters, leaflets and talks by community support officers.

North Herts youth crime reduction officer, PC Steve Gibbs, said: "We want young people to understand the impact on victims and the serious consequences. Children could end up with a criminal record which will stay with them for life and could have a negative affect when it comes to getting a job.

"Most children and adults have no idea of just how serious sending these kinds of messages can be and we want to raise awareness of this."

Hitchin Girls School head teacher Frances Manning, who is supporting the campaign, said: "Teaching our students how to stay safe is so important for us. We already do a lot of work on e-safety, both with our students in the classroom and in parent workshops. This campaign complements our existing work really well and will help our young people to deal with some of the issues to which they are increasingly exposed with today's technology."

Police advise anyone who is receiving abusive messages to:

- Come out of the conversation as soon as possible and do not respond

- Keep a record of any messages

- block the person from contacting you if possible

- Raise the issue with parents, a guardian or a teacher

- If seriously concerned about the nature of messages contact police