Giving a voice to the vulnerable: DigitalMe
Last year, the government amended the Domestic Abuse Bill so that for the first time, children are recognised as victims in their own right. This crucial change means that it is more likely that their experiences and needs will be considered by the team of professionals supporting them and their families.
Children have very often been the invisible victims and Gateshead Council’s Domestic Abuse team wanted to raise awareness of their experiences by creating a resource that could be shared in schools.
The Domestic Abuse team wanted to be able to give children a voice; allow them to ask for the specific help they needed; tell teachers how they’d like them to react when they need to disclose sensitive or upsetting information and let other children have an insight into their experiences. Our DigitalMe programme is ideal for these sorts of issues because anonymity is key, never more so in situations like this.
Now that the films are complete, they will be shared with all of the schools in Gateshead.
You can watch their powerful films here. Please be advised that this film contains descriptions of domestic abuse as experienced by children and young people.
“I want to thank all our young people who contributed to this fantastic piece of work. There is no doubt that the advice they have shared will help many other young people who are living with domestic abuse in their homes. I think they are an incredibly brave group of young people and we should all be extremely proud of their contribution to preventing abuse in families.”
Councillor Gary Haley, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Gateshead Council
If you have a powerful message to convey or an issue that needs a spotlight shone on it, then talk to us about how Digital Me can work for you and your organisation.
This project was funded by the Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner.