Young people, politics and the law

Girlguiding has launched Girls Matter: Our Calls for Change, a campaign which asks politicians to listen to the voices of girls and young women in the run up to the General Election. The eight changes which the campaign is advocating are:

• Listen to girls and young women, take them seriously and make sure their voices count;
• Demand that schools take a zero-tolerance approach to sexual bullying and harassment;
• Call on all schools to teach body confidence and gender equality;
• Make girls’ rights a priority in the UK’s approach to international development;
• Stop children’s exposure to harmful sexualised content in mainstream media;
• Empower girls and young women to speak out and be heard on the impact of media sexism and stereotyping;
• Modernise Sex and Relationship Education so all young people can make informed decisions and stay safe; and
• Guarantee that women will be equally represented in Parliament.

To download the report visit http://new.girlguiding.org.uk/report.

The Children's Commissioner has carried out a rights-based examination of the impact of legal aid cuts on children and young people since 2013. She warns that vulnerable young people are being deprived of justice because they cannot get representation without legal aid. To download the report visit www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/content/publications/content_873.

Beyond Youth Custody has published a research-based practitioners' guide on the resettlement of girls and young women following time spent in custody. Findings include that female offending is often associated with bereavement, loss, abuse and involvement in the child protection system and custody damages women's ability to maintain positive relationships. For further information visit www.beyondyouthcustody.net/resources/publications/resettlement-girls-young-women-practitioners-guide. To download the practitioner’s guide visit www.beyondyouthcustody.net/wp-content/uploads/Resettlement-girls-and-young-women-guide.pdf and the research report visit www.beyondyouthcustody.net/wp-content/uploads/421_research-report_04_8_w-front_cover.pdf.