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Back in May, our teen reporter Lola spoke to Anne Longfield, the Children’s Commissioner for England, and asked her about what she was doing to safeguard young people during the pandemic. This month, we met up with Anne again, this time answering questions she’d put to our teens.

Watch the film to find out how our teens would like society to change and what they’d do if they were Prime Minister for a day…

Thanks to Lola, Liv, Jude, Gemma and Anne Longfield for giving their time for this interview.

You can watch the previous interview with Lola and Anne Longfield below

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Our Raising Teens radio show looks at domestic abuse this week and how lockdown has exacerbated the issue. The National Domestic Abuse helpline reports a 25% increase in calls and online requests for help since the lockdown. This episode aims to raise awareness and provide advice for those who may be listening and need help. Guests discuss all forms of family abuse including child to parent abuse. If you need help or support with this issue, we have included lots of useful resources at the bottom of this post.

Host Guy Lloyd talks to Jane Griffith, Director at the charity CAPA (Child and Adolescent to Parent Abuse), Alex Psaila from Relate and PC Roisin Vafaee from Sussex Police.

Our teen reporter, Lola Ray, talks to a mother and daughter who have experienced domestic violence and child to parent abuse in the home.

You can hear Raising Teens on BBC Radio Sussex and Surrey at 7.30pm on Mondays and Wednesdays and online on BBC Sounds.

🔊 Listen to Raising Teens: Domestic abuse in Lockdown on BBC Sounds

Listen to previous episodes of Raising Teens:

🔊 Listen to Separated Parenting in Lockdown on BBC Sounds

🔊 Listen to Lockdown Home Schooling on BBC Sounds

🔊 Listen to Anxiety in a Pandemic on BBC Sounds

HELP & ADVICE

In an emergency call 999. If it is not safe for you to speak you can use the Silent Solution system – call 999, and if the operator hears no response, you will be directed to press ‘55’ if you need help. The conversation will then continue in a way that allows the caller to communicate by using yes/no to answer questions.

24hr National Domestic Abuse Helpline freephone 0808 2000 247 

Refuge, supporting women and children who experience all forms of  violence and abuse

Women’s Aid, a grassroots federation working together to provide life-saving services in England and build a future where domestic abuse is not tolerated

Rise, an independent, Brighton-based registered charity that helps people affected by domestic abuse. Rise offers practical help ranging from direct advice to refuge accommodation for those whose lives are at risk.

NSPCC: What is child abuse?

CAPA, responding to Child or Adolescent to Parent Abuse.​ Supporting parents, grandparents, carers, young people and professionals

Domestic Abuse Survivors’ Alliance, a Brighton-based peer support group for anyone who has experienced, or been affected by, domestic abuse.

The Portal, a partnership of leading Sussex Domestic and Sexual Abuse Charities with a combined experience of over 60 years supporting survivors of domestic and sexual abuse and violence. Freephone 0300 323 9985  

Brighton & Hove Council help for victims of domestic abuse

Respect Phoneline, a confidential helpline, email and webchat service for domestic abuse perpetrators and those supporting them.  Freephone 0808 8024040

Survivor’s Network, offering support for those who have been raped or sexually assaulted.

HELP IN LOCKDOWN

If you are self-isolating with someone who makes you feel unsafe, Rise has produced a guide to help you stay safe at home during lockdown

HELP WITH DRUGS AND ADDICTION

Talk to Frank, information about drugs

Young Minds on drugs and alcohol

Childline, information about addiction

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We believe that education is so important in helping us to understanding people’s lives and the issues that they deal with every day, in understanding racism, institutional racism, systemic racism, for example… In the wake of the protests around the world about the death or George Floyd, many have asked for book recommendations suitable for young people and we’ve had some brilliant suggestions from our Facebook group, Raising Teens in Lockdown. Here’s are a few of them. Thanks to everyone on for contributing.

Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman

Refugee Boy by Benjamin Zephaniah

The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge

Brit(ish): On Race, Identity and Belonging by Afua Hirsch

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Freedom is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine and the Foundations of a Movement by Angela Y Davis

There’s a great piece by Gary Younge about his year of reading books by African women. He writes: “Faced with an array of choices and limited time, when it comes to literature, there’s a part of me that I’m not particularly proud of that chooses not to make the effort, even when there is little to no translation necessary. Somewhere deep in my subconscious I must have decided that books by African women would be harder than those by some other demographics. They weren’t. On some level I must have had reading African women down as self-improving but not necessarily enjoyable, when in fact it was mostly the latter and often both.”

There’s also a really good list here on the embracerace website.

Please leave a comment if you have any others to add ❤️

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Kaia, 17, is one of the organisers of the Black Lives Matter protest that takes place in Brighton on 13 June 2020, in solidarity with the protesters in America and around the world over the death of George Floyd. Here she writes about why we’re marching and what is being done to safeguard participants.

This peaceful (but not silent) protest will commemorate the changes already marked in history, but also be the start of ticking the boxes left untouched.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CA5QP7DjdtX

This march has been assessed thoroughly by all the coordinators of the team, delving into legal matters and collaborating with others in order to gain a better idea of how to conduct this safely. From the compassion of many participants, we are stacking up on PPE and raising awareness of the imperative safety procedures on our Instagram account. We are in contact with the council, and developing our routes to ensure the safety of the protesters and we are also highlighting the importance of keeping social distance. This will be reiterated at the protest, as well as information about PPE, protesting rights and other matters that will ease any fears around the event.   

This movement will allow thousands to stand in solidarity with the victims in America to a corrupt, explicit and oppressive system. We walk alongside many others participating across the UK and across the globe who are instigating movements akin to ours, but we also can walk with our ancestors that fought for the foundations we have today. We all can then provide the foundations for those in the future, who may have to continue this legacy. United, we can shatter the ideology of this fight for equality being black and white; Black Lives Matter is a movement that is pro-black, not anti-white. On the 13th of June, a day symbolic of the 13th amendment, we can highlight the barriers maintaining this racial hierarchy and start to find solutions on a large scale and a small scale. Participants of all ages, all genders, all sexualities, all ethnicities, all religions can start to learn about the world and its very constructors, which were hidden from the education system and those in authority. By being black, you are the products of the history our ancestors did not choose, and it’s not just down to black people to fix it.   

If you have any other questions/queries, please feel free to contact us on our Instagram account (@brighton.blm)!  

Justice. Continue the legacy!  

Kaia, 17