SELF-HARM IMAGES SHARED ONLINE
New research has shown that young people are sharing and viewing images of self-harm online in huge numbers. The study of over 2,000 young people carried out by ChildLine, YouthNet, SelfharmUK and YoungMinds, showed that over half of 11-14 year-olds and over 80 per cent of 18-21 year-olds have either self-harmed or know someone who has. On top of this, 60 per cent of 11-14 year-olds said they would share images of self-harm on social media. Lucie Russell, director of campaigns for YoungMinds said: ‘Our research shows that exposure to images of people self-harming online is far too common among children and young people and that this exposure is having a significant effect on their well-being.’
NEUBIBLE
Designers from Apple and Yahoo have combined to launch a new mobile Bible app, NeuBible. The app aims to strip away everything between the user and scripture. One of the designers, Kory Westerhold said: ‘I set the content aside for a while, and just tried to create the most beautiful reading experience that I could.’
FLAME CONGRESS TAKES OVER WEMBLEY
CCPAS: ‘HOLD CHURCH OFFICALS ACCOUNTABLE’
The Churches Child Protection Advisory Service (CCPAS), in response to the Government’s proposal to make public sector officials liable
for the neglect of children, has called for this to be extended to church officials. CCPAS said they were aware of cases where known abusers were moved within organisations rather than reported in order to protect the reputations of churches and denominations. Simon Bass,
Chief Executive of CCPAS, said: ‘Mr Cameron’s announcement reflects both how endemic this form of abuse has become across the UK and
how urgently we need to address it… but it must include others with duties of care to children as well. If it can be proved that they failed to act because they were protecting the reputation of an institution, or high profile individuals within it, that should be the criminal element.’
SEXUAL CONSENT LESSONS
The government has revealed plans to teach young people about sexual consent from the age of 11. The plans have been drawn up by the PHSE association which says that young people should be taught about consent before they are sexually active, adding, ‘Recognising that some young people will be sexually active before the age of 16 does not equate to encouraging underage sexual activity.’ Romance Academy director Jason Royce told Premier Youthwork: ‘The world young people are growing up in is sexualised, and the average age of first exposure to pornography is cited as 11 (anecdotal evidence points to a much lower age, maybe as low as eight). I think that children and young people need both protection from, and preparation for thriving in the world around them. Since it seems irresponsible to let pornography and the playground do the educating, we should get in there first with quality, age-appropriate relationship and sex education.’
BOYS’ BRIGADE APPOINTS NEW CEO
The Boys’ Brigade has announced Andrew Johnston as their new chief executive. Andrew has previously worked for the Methodist Church and Christian Solidarity Worldwide. The Current CEO Steve Dickinson is leaving to lead the Global Fellowship of Christian Youth – an organisation Boys’ Brigade is part of. Andrew said: ‘The Boys’ Brigade plays a vital role in transforming the lives of children and young people, and making a difference in the communities it serves, and it is an immense privilege to be able to be part of this.’
