The Inform Young People Programme is a free, psycho-educative programme. It’s designed for young people aged 13 to 21 who are in trouble with the police or their school or college for unsafe or harmful sexual behaviour online, including:
- Having, sharing or making indecent images of children
- Sexual messages or contact with children
- Risky online behaviour, such as viewing pornography
The programme helps young people learn how to use the internet safely, understand healthy online sexual behaviour, and reduce the risk of the behaviour happening again or becoming more serious.
How does it work?
We offer up to 10 hours of support, usually delivered online through Microsoft Teams. Each young person works with a dedicated practitioner, who will tailor the sessions to their needs and situation.
The programme also includes additional sessions for parents or carers, to help them improve family communication and cope with the difficult circumstances they are experiencing.
What does the programme cover?
The sessions are educational and supportive, offering practical advice and clear information for young people and their families. While every programme is tailored to the individual, sessions usually cover:
- Staying safe online and understanding sexual behaviour online, including the effects of pornography
- Consent, healthy relationships, and ways to cope with difficult situations
- Support and guidance for issues affecting the young person and their family
- Ways to prevent harmful behaviour from happening again or becoming more serious
- Safety planning to help families improve online safety
How do I get onto the programme?
Young people must be 13 to 21 to take part. They won’t be able to remain anonymous. We accept self-referrals from young people and their parents or carers – contact Stop It Now to find out more.
If you are under 18, we need consent from a parent or carer, so you should contact Stop It Now together with your parent or carer.
We offer Inform Young People free of charge. If you’d like to give to support the ongoing delivery of the programme, you can do so here.
Further work with young people
If a young person needs additional or more intensive support, or if safeguarding actions are needed, we can discuss this with other agencies involved. We may be able to offer further support if funding is available through other agencies working with the young person – for example via children’s social care or education.