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Child Safety Week – Teenagers and young
people.
Safety is a tricky subject where teenagers
and young people are concerned.
Some may think teenagers are the most likely age group to be getting
into dangerous situations and putting themselves at risk.
Others may think it is in fact teenagers who cause trouble and make
other people feel threatened.
If you’re the parent of a teenager, you may think teenagers are a
vulnerable group.
But what is the reality and how can we keep help teenagers stay safe?
Devan Lucas and Mark Talbot, Wigan’s UK Youth Parliament
representatives, give their views.
Devan, 17, says: “A lot of adults think it’s young people who make
others feel they are not safe. A lot of people will see groups of
teenagers hanging around and think they are at risk from them.
“The fact is teenagers hang around in big groups to feel safer.”
She continued: “Last year we went to an
event where young people were asked what issues they felt were most
important to them. Crime and transport came at the top of everybody’s
list.
“We don’t have cars and we have to walk everywhere or wait for buses to
get around. I don’t think teenagers would admit it but a lot of time
they might not feel safe.”
Devan goes on to say that young people’s dependency on public transport
can make them feel vulnerable.
Waiting alone at bus stops or even encountering drunken, abusive or
bullying behaviour from other passengers will make young people feel
they are not safe.
The answer to this? Always tell someone where you are and what time you
will be home.
It is in fact this good communication that is the key to keeping young
people safe.
Teenagers and young people will often feel a growing need for
independence and want to make their own informed choices.
Parents however may still want to keep a tight reign on their children.
Devan and Mark believe building up a relationship of mutual trust and
good communication between parents and young people is the key to
staying safe.
Devan says: “A lot of my friends feel as though they are not trusted.
“I know their parents are trying to keep them safe but this gets
misinterpreted and they believe their parents are thinking it is them
who will go out and cause trouble.
“From a personal point of view I would feel like I had let my parents
down if I broke their trust.
“If you just let your parents know where you are and what time you’ll be
home they will ease off.
“It is about an equal balance of trust.”
Mark, 18, agrees: “For me and my parents, the key is always being
contactable, letting them know where I am and what time I’m going to be
home.
“That trust has to be earned – young people should give their parents a
reason to trust them and parents should give teenagers a chance to earn
that trust.
“For some families this may not be the same, but I think there should be
trust on both sides.”
ENDS.
Further information.
For more information contact Angela Kirk, Young People’s Press
Officer for the Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust, on 01942 486924.
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