Vulnerable Children & Young People and The Kid’s Company Christmas Campaign.

Posted 14 Dec 2011

Online Youth Outreach would like to share and encourage YOU to share this great campaign by Kids Company. This charity helps over 17,000 vulnerable children and young people in and around London, and this year, as always, they are hosting a Christmas Day party for thousands of kids who might otherwise spend the holiday alone. On the day, dedicated volunteers will cook a feast for 3,500 kids at the party, and will create food packages for 4,000 others. To raise money to make the event possible, they have created a Facebook app that allows people to make small donations to the party in the form of virtual gifts, from party hats to Brussels sprouts to a star for the tree.

Making donations tangible makes for a fun user experience and allows donors to put their personal touch on their contribution. Take a look: www.facebook.com/kidscompany
PLEASE can you promote this event through TWITTER #XmasToRemember
To click onto the Kids Company Facebook page and LIKE the page, so this is shared through your online social networks.

I have cried a great deal this last week. I have opened news papers throughout this week and read numerous articles where children have been killed by their fathers or parents. One article shared how the children had defense wounds before being murdered, that is sickening, despicable and this can not continue. Numerous children witness domestic violence the physical abuse but also the psychological and emotional abuse that take place. Some children are victims and sadly when the parent seeking to flee to safety, that is the most dangerous period when the abuse can escalate out of control. There have been improvements in the police service through training and increased communication with multi agency groups but still there is so much more that could be done to protect children & young people. 2 woman a week die due to domestic violence, many are mothers, sisters, grandmothers – family members.

There are difficult challenges already upon Children and Family services across the UK due to the public sector cut backs. Community, Children and Youth services have been the hardest hit with many community, children and youth provisions needing to reduce their service provisions in rural and urban areas and in some case cease all together. In my view these cut backs will cost the government and us as tax payers more in the future to tackle the increased isolation of vulnerable children & young people (children & young people from both poor and wealthier communities – vulnerability present’s in many forms). Due to the increased lack of child & youth specific safe places in local communities for them to spend time when home, school or their street is not a safe haven. Where they can meet youth practitioners who are trained to develop positive relationships of trust with these vulnerable young people to offer support, guidance and raise aspirations. Community practitioners, Children and Youth practitioners are trained to ‘watch’ for key indicators when a child or young person may need additional support i.e. change in behave, hygiene or the way they dress, body language, increased or de-creased attendance to provision and asking the question in a respectful and gentle manner ‘ You ok?’

Social media platforms and online communities for many children & young people can be a place to spend time with their friends to connect, offer support to each other, to escape from the off line work, play and explore their identity. There are numerous complex issues to consider: protection, provision for internet safety training, prevention of harm. Equally there are some excellent opportunities for Children and Family services to connect and maintain contact and offer support to vulnerable children & young people. Children & young people who witness and each day survive domestic violence should be offered support and advice where they spend time online i.e. social network platforms, online games and through mobile devices.

There are numerous ethical considerations of confidentiality and privacy, how to offer support to a children and young person privately so they are not placed at risk? Numerous council websites have ‘panic buttons’, so could a private message be sent to offer support with a link to a children/youth provision website with a panic button. When delivering training we encourage youth provisions to have themes for each week to raise young people awareness on mental health, safe sexual practice, information on domestic violence ect. There is also the added security option to request a code to be set to your mobile to be inputted when logging into your Facebook account this could prevent the risk of the abusive parent(s) from hacking into the Facebook account. How many young people know how to activate this? Do you?

Check outFACEBOOK DOMESTIC VIOLENCE information section