National Prevention Programme
Young people can encounter sexual violence in various aspects of their lives, including within their relationships, peer groups at school, and online interactions. Studies conducted in secondary schools have revealed that young people experience numerous different forms of sexual violence just has sexual insults, harassment, unwanted touching and image-based abuse.
To address these issues and to provide young people with the necessary knowledge and language to discuss sexual violence, as well as access support, The STAR Centre facilitates the National Sexual Violence Prevention Programme. These Prevention workshops conducted with young people ages 11 –25 in secondary schools, youth groups, and colleges across North, South, and East Ayrshire covering topics such as consent, how power dynamics affect relationships, pornography, what sexual violence is, it’s impacts and what they can do if someone tells them they’re a survivor.
These workshops, developed by Rape Crisis Scotland, are tailored for different age groups and stages of development. The resource pack is grounded in evidence-based practices, has been externally evaluated, and aligns with existing programmes such as Equally Safe, Curriculum of Excellence, GIRFEC, and RSHP, ensuring comprehensive support and education for young people.
If you’d like more information or would like us to visit your youth group, school, college or university please fill out this enquiry form or contact us directly on prevention@starcentreayrshire.org
Listed below are our workshop topics, along with a short synopsis.
Power
Sexual violence is about power and control. We want to help young people identify power dynamics within their own relationships and be able to use this in a positive way, rather than toxic or unhealthy ways. It’s important for young people to be able to learn about how different forms of oppression are connected.
Consent
In this workshop we help young people understand the principles behind consent, and to develop the communication skills needed to practice it. We draw attention to the kinds of pressures or expectations young people experience about sex & relationships. We facilitate discussions which challenge and assert definitions of what consent means, particularly what the law says.
Pornography
In the age of the internet, both girls and boys are increasingly developing unrealistic ideas & expectations about bodies and sexual behaviours, particularly from pornography. We want young people to have great sexual relationships, based on consent and pleasure, not based on what they might feel is the ‘norm’ and what they are often pressured to conform to.
Understanding Sexual Violence
This workshop covers forms of sexual violence, myths surrounding sexual violence and help facilitate conversations around the scale of prejudice & discrimination. We break down the concept of ‘violence’ as young people often understand it as something physical. However, when we expand its definition to encompass violation, e.g., the use of power to overcome someone else’s will, we can better understand the kinds of impacts survivors of sexual violence experience.
Online Sexual Violence
In this workshop young people will have space to think about their behaviours online, the social media and digital spaces they use, and develop the skills to apply a critical lens to the way they engage with others in these spaces. Providing this space to discuss online behaviours will help young people to expand their definitions of sexual violence, develop boundaries for themselves, and help them to challenge attitudes related to sexual violence that they see online.
Feedback
Feedback from young people who have participated in the workshops has been overwhelmingly positive:
“One thing I learnt is what to say/respond to someone telling me about an assault and what the barriers are for people to talk about it,” S5/6 Marr College
“One thing I learnt is that porn can create negative stereotypes & stigma/culture around sex & body image between men & women,” S3/4 Kyle Academy
“It was presented well, and I felt safe when talking,” S1/2 Grange Academy
If you’d like more information regarding the Prevention workshops, or would like us to visit your group, school, college or university please fill out this enquiry form. Any further questions please email us directly on prevention@starcentreayrshire.org
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