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Two thirds of parents in the UK believe children are exposed to unsuitable content on television before the watershed, a survey has shown. An online survey of 1,004 parents of children under the age of 18 revealed that 67 per cent thought inappropriate content was broadcast before 9pm. A further 80 per cent said they felt films and video games with violent or sexual themes can be accessed too easily by children. The research, conducted for The Mothers’ Union, also showed that most parents think television, films, magazines and the Internet make children sexually aware at a younger age. The charity has called for a ban on marketing and selling sexualising products to children under 16 and put in place safeguards to protect children under 16 from viewing displays of goods of a sexual nature. Pray: for the media to recognise their responsibility in protecting children and young people. (Dt.5:29)
New analysis, released Monday by The Children’s Society, shows that the government’s proposed cap on benefits will cut support for more than 200,000 children. Children will be around nine times more likely than adults to be affected. The Department of Work and Pensions’ proposed scheme aims to promote fairness and get adults back into work by limiting benefits for out-of-work households to £500 per week for couples and families with children. But analysis by The Children’s Society suggests that children will be by far the biggest losers if the proposals become law - with three quarters of the total number of individuals affected being children. The charity found that the cap will impact around 50,000 households, 95 per cent of which are estimated to have children. These families will lose an average of £93 a week - the equivalent to around double the average weekly family food bill.
Pray: that the Government would not ignore the most vulnerable in our society. (Is.58:10)
Downing Street is launching a review of childcare and child-minding to see how it can be made more affordable by cutting red tape. Government research suggests six out of 10 parents feel there is insufficient childcare in their area. The move comes as an official review of early years education in England calls for all nursery staff to have A-level standard professional qualifications. The Nutbrown Review also wants their maths and literacy skills strengthened. Prof Cathy Nutbrown was asked by the government to look at how the childcare workforce could be strengthened. In her report, she says the current system of early years qualifications is not ‘equipping practitioners with the knowledge, skills and understanding they need’ to give babies and young children a good start. She warns that there are too many qualifications and calls for them to be strengthened.
Pray: that following the review the government will raise the standards of childcare and that parents will take their roll and responsibilities seriously. (Pr.9:9)
More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-18496847
Three-quarters of girls who have sent explicit images to boys on their mobiles say the pictures were shared without their consent, a shock survey has found. The NSPCC warned yesterday that growing numbers of girls become distraught or even suicidal after regretting giving in to pressure to send explicit photos and videos of themselves. The practice known as sexting leaves many humiliated after the images are passed on to others in their school or even put up on social networking websites. The children’s charity said, however, that many girls see sexting as a normal part of growing up and are happy to perform on video and send the images to a boy. Two-thirds have no idea that sharing images of under-18s is technically illegal and that teenagers can be locked up for engaging in sexting. They need to understand that there could be serious consequences. Images put online may stay there forever and be seen by vast numbers of people
Pray: for our young people to have a greater appreciation of the issues involved in sexting and the wisdom and confidence to refuse to become involved. (Ps.41:9)
An overhaul of how police and prosecutors in England and Wales deal with alleged sexual offences against children is expected to be announced in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal. Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer told the BBC there was an ‘overcautious’ approach with victims. He said the focus was too much on whether the victim was telling the truth and not enough on the suspect. Describing this as a ‘watershed moment,’ Mr Starmer said we need to ‘clear the decks of a raft of existing guidelines’. A Scottish parliamentary inquiry into child sex exploitation and prostitution has also been launched, amid claims the problem may be far worse than thought http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-21669726 Holyrood's petitions committee is looking into the issue following the concerns from children's charity Barnardo's. MSPs will consider whether current measures and guidelines are doing enough to tackle exploitation.
Pray: that the authorities will bring measures and guidelines that will control this problem. (1Cor.6:18)
More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21673703
The Church of England's parliamentary body has apologised to victims of sexual abuse at the hands of Anglican clergy, noting its failure to prevent it and respond effectively. The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby, said addressing the issue had been "absolutely agonising". Speaking in a meeting of the General Synod in York on Sunday, the Archbishop admitted some victims had been "badly treated" by the Church. He said there needed to be a "complete change of culture and behaviour" in the Church of England. "We cannot in 20 years be finding ourselves having this same debate and saying 'Well we didn't quite understand then'," he said. "There has to be a complete change of culture and behaviour and in addition there is a profound theological point. We are not doing all this, we are not seeking to say how devastatingly, appallingly, atrociously sorry we are for the great failures there have been for our own sakes, for our own flourishing, for the protection of the Church.
Pray: for all those affected by this issue and that both they and the church will be able to move on. (2Pe.3:9)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/child.abuse.apology.from.church.of.england/33106.htm
Britain's chief rabbi, Lord Sacks, has accused David Cameron of failing to do enough to encourage marriage and says multiculturalism in Britain has "had its day". Lord Sacks said the prime minister should recognise marriage in the tax system and do more to support mothers who stay at home to look after their children. "I think the government has not done enough [to encourage marriage]," he said in an interview with The Times. "Although I don't take a political stance ... I don't think the government has done enough at all." Lord Sacks said the estimated £9bn-a-year cost of family breakdown and "non-marriage" meant the state had a direct interest in promoting marriage. "[The government] should certainly recognise marriage in the tax system, it should certainly give more support to mothers who stay at home or for childcare provision," he said. "I don't believe in getting involved in the details but the principle is pretty clear."
Pray: for a renewed Government support for marriage after years of policies that have undermined it. ( )
More: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/19/rabbi-lord-sacks-david-cameron-failing-marriage
The music industry has a ‘culture of demeaning women’ that forces stars to sell themselves as sex objects, according to singer Charlotte Church. Church said she was ‘pressurised’ into wearing revealing outfits in videos by male executives when she was 19 or 20. Now 27, the star said young female artists were routinely ‘coerced into sexually demonstrative behaviour in order to hold on to their careers.’ She made her comments during BBC 6 Music's annual John Peel Lecture. Her stinging attack on sexism in the music industry comes amid a heated debate over the sexual imagery used by pop stars like Miley Cyrus and Rihanna. The music business is ‘a male dominated industry with a juvenile perspective on gender and sexuality’ and increasingly wants ‘sex objects that appear child-like’, Church claimed. The star accused record labels of encouraging young singers ‘to present themselves as hypersexualised, unrealistic, cartoonish, as objects, reducing female sexuality to a prize you can win’.
Pray: against the sexualising of young women and for the protection of those at risk. (1Th.4:3)
The UK housing charity Shelter has today (14 December 2010) warned of a rise in homelessness as new research reveals the number of households in rent or mortgage arrears has more than doubled in the past year. Worryingly, households with children are most at risk (five per cent). Shelter estimates that more than 480,000 children are currently living in families that are falling behind with their basic housing costs. With recent government figures showing the first sustained increase in homelessness since 2003, Shelter is warning that homelessness could be set to soar in 2011 as Government cuts to housing benefit and support for homeowners, along with predicted job losses and increases in living costs, push thousands of struggling households over the edge. Shelter’s Chief Executive Campbell Robb said: 'We urge the Government to think again about the cumulative effects of its policies on people who are at real risk of losing their homes'.
Pray: that the Government will adopt policies that will prevent people from losing their homes. (Isa.32:18)
The housing and homelessness charity Shelter has launched a new advertising campaign to encourage people facing housing problems to seek earlier advice. The campaign aims to tackle a common reluctance to do this: a survey carried out in 2010 by the Civil and Social Justice Panel found that 50 per cent of people do not seek external advice when they are in housing difficulties. The main focus of the activity is a series of poster advertisements. Each depicts a person in distress because they face a serious crisis, such as sudden job loss or mounting debt. They carry a single headline which shares with the viewer the desperation the person is feeling. The charity says that early advice can be crucial in helping people with housing issues to find a positive outcome for their problem. The advertising campaign aims to highlight this as well as demonstrating how people can seek help.
Pray: for all those facing critical issues in their lives at this time. (Heb.4:16)