10 June 2021
"Officials from the Department for Children, Young People, Education and Skills (CYPES) have been working closely with the Jersey Safeguarding Partnership Board (SPB) to identify how best to address concerns and allegations about misogyny, bullying and sexual abuse in schools.
As a first step, the Safeguarding Partnership Board has, today, commenced an independent learning review into the response to allegations reported anonymously earlier this year by students attending Jersey College for Girls.
Following the death of Sarah Everard and the allegations about sexual assaults and sexual harassment in schools in England, Jersey College for Girls explored and recorded the experiences of its own students in March 2021.
The anonymous and confidential contributions describe a range of experiences of a highly sensitive nature including misogyny, sexism and sexual abuse.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank all those students for their brave testimonials, which will help us to tackle and understand more about the prevalence of sexual harassment and other unacceptable behaviours amongst young people in Jersey.
Since the allegations were disclosed, multiagency meetings have taken place with senior officials in the Department for CYPES, States of Jersey Police and the Safeguarding Partnership Board and support has been made available for students who may be affected.
The Safeguarding Partnership Board's independent learning review, which is fully supported by Government, has commenced and will take place over the next few weeks to gain understanding about how events unfolded leading up to and following the production of the anonymous disclosures.
The learning from the review will inform strengthened support for schools and colleges in Jersey to help keep children and young people safe. We also welcome the release of the Ofsted report in England today, whereby inspectors visited 32 state and private schools and colleges and spoke to more than 900 children and young people about the prevalence of sexual harassment in their lives and the lives of their peers.
The findings and recommendations of this report including the challenges of on line safety will be considered in this review and help inform actions to ensure the safeguarding and wellbeing of the Island's children and young people.
Support:
The Government of Jersey continues to ensure that support services are available for any student who needs them.
There is a range of support available for young people who may be affected, which includes:
- The YES project (Youth Enquiry Service) offers information, advice and counselling for Young People up to 25 years old. It is free to call on 0800 7350 010 and is open from 12pm – 8pm every day.
- School Based Counsellors are able to provide advice in schools. More information is available via the Government of Jersey website.
- Kooth Jersey provides a safe, moderated and non-judgmental place for young people to talk, connect and chat with others and know they are not alone. The service offers drop-in or bookable sessions with professional counsellors between 12pm and 10pm on weekdays and between 6pm and 10pm on weekends. Young people can access Kooth by visiting www.kooth.com and selecting 'Jersey Kooth' during the sign up process.
- The Children and Families Hub offers support and help for safeguarding concerns. Please call the hub on 519000 or email childrenandfamilieshub@gov.je
- Dewberry House, Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) provides emotional support, medical care, and long term practical support to anyone impacted by any type of sexual offenses. They are available via a 24 hour helpline (01534 888222) and via www.dewberryhouse.je
- If a child is at immediate risk call the police on 999
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