Barnsley Pride hold one minute silence to honour 14-year-old Ollie Lee who took her own life due to bullying
“Think of OIlie, think of her laughter, think of her heart and think of the children who still need protecting.”
Residents attending the annual Barnsley pride event last weekend honoured Ollie Lee, a teenager from the town who took her own life due to bullying.
Ollie Lee was only 14 when she died in October 2024.
An inquest into her death in May this year found that the teenager had been subjected to years of relentless bullying.
The inquest heard that there had been “missed opportunities” for mental health support for the teen.
She had become a victim of bullying at Barnsley Academy, and had suffered physical and homophobic attacks.
A year before her death, Ollie was put on a waiting list for psychiatric intervention, but “poor communication” between agencies meant she was discharged and her mental health crisis wasn’t properly treated.
There was a minute’s silence and Ollie’s mum Courtney gave a speech.
Mum Courtney Lee, said: “Ollie chose her name and has her mum it matters to me that her name is spoken, respected and remembered.
“So today when we stand in silence for Ollie, we are not only standing for the way that she died, we are standing for life and the way she lived. We are standing for the child that she was and we are standing for every young person who deserves to feel safe, accepted, protected and loved exactly how they are,” she said.
“So I ask you please, during this minute of silence, don’t just think of loss. Think of OIlie, think of her laughter, think of her heart and think of the children who still need protecting.”
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