The Children’s Society supports vulnerable children in England and Wales. Now they are looking for bloggers concerned about childen to be part of their ambassador team. Clare Bracey of the Children’s Society tells how you can get involved.
Teenagers. It’s just an awkward age right? As a parent of a 17-year-old, I can testify that it comes with challenges such as how late he should be allowed to stay out, whether he will answer his phone, and whether it was him or his friend that left that cigarette butt in my garden.
But for the most vulnerable teenagers that we work with at The Children’s Society, facing things like abuse, neglect and harm, the situation is more than awkward. It’s Seriously Awkward.
That’s where you come in. The Children’s Society are inviting BritsMums bloggers to become part of our Seriously Awkward campaign through a new Blogger Ambassador Programme.
We’re looking for bloggers interested in the issues affecting vulnerable children and teenagers, who want to use their blog for a good cause and help us turn up the volume on their stories. To make sure that you have the resources and information that you need for blogs on these issues, The Children’s Society will send you exclusive blogger briefings, interview opportunities to build your knowledge and invites to events where you can meet experts, decision makers and network with other bloggers. There will certainly be lots to blog about.
The first step is easy, you just need to register your interest in joining our Blogger Ambassador Programme, and we will then send you regular updates and opportunities to get involved. Click here to sign up for the Blogger Ambassador Programme.
By supporting the Seriously Awkward campaign with your blog, you will be helping teenagers like Eva, just one of the young people we work with.
By the age of 10, Eva had been rejected by her mother and sent to live with her father. Unfortunately, he abused her. In this very vulnerable situation, when Eva was 13 she was befriended by a man seven years older than her.
This relationship was abusive but Eva called him her ‘boyfriend’ and felt that he cared for her. The situation spiralled and Eva was eventually taken into care at the age of fifteen – at this time her ‘boyfriend’ was also put in prison for violent behaviour.
By 16, Eva’s care placement broke down. And this was crucially the age where, suddenly, less could be done to protect Eva. Agencies considered the relationship with the ‘boyfriend’ as domestic abuse rather than child sexual exploitation, which made it more difficult to protect her.
Eva is now 17. She has been left vulnerable and unprotected and there seems to be an attitude from professionals that she is 17 so can look after herself – but The Children’s Society is continuing to fight for her.
As her support worker at The Children’s Society said, ‘If Eva was 13 or 14 when she was admitted into care the agencies would have done more, but because she was nearly 16 she did not get the intensive support that she needed.’
Eva has said she feels her life is so tainted she should just keep on living the life she currently has.
We don’t believe any teenager should have to feel like Eva. And our research shows that parents agree with us – three quarters believe that all children should be protected until they are 18, but the law is dangerously inconsistent in this area.
Support our Seriously Awkward campaign and help teenagers like Eva. Register your interest to join our Blogger Ambassador Programme. And of course, please don’t forget to sign our petition asking the Government to change the law to protect 16 and 17 year olds from harm, abuse and neglect.
Sign up for the Blogger Ambassador Programme
Sign the Seriously Awkward petition
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Claire
Friday 24th of July 2015
I would love to get involved in this but can't find the link to sign up. Could you point me in the right direction?
Jennifer Howze
Friday 24th of July 2015
Hi Claire, an oversight! The link is now included above and you can click here to get involved: http://goo.gl/forms/uEwTPEfTcO