Appendix 9
The extent to which Caledonia Youth provision addresses wider influences
Illustrative quotes from contributors
Wider influences: The social environment in which young people live
- There is a profound link between poverty and sexual ill health. ( CY)
- Caledonia Youth are very conscious of this and their work focuses in areas with high STI risk, links with poverty and poor sexual health outcomes. In this area we have very poor outcomes and Caledonia Youth focuses and targets that. It's absolutely necessary. (S)
- We only know what they tell us... so might not know they are looked after. And we collect most information from under 16s. I don't know, should we ask more of over 16s? For under 16s Fraser Guidelines do mean we ask who they live with to get parental picture. ( CY)
- I understand that young people from poorer communities or with lower educational attainment are more vulnerable to poorer health outcomes but the clinic work also shows us the diversity of the young people who are taking risks, making the same mistakes. So, it's important, but it's not all one way. ( CY)
Wider influences: Self esteem
- For me this is the main thing. It's very low amongst young women. There's a sense of shame. ( CY)
- Their staff take a systemic approach. They appreciate that if a young person has low self esteem then they are hindered in respect of their ability to make an informed decision. (S)
- This is key to our work with girls, but I would like to see more work with professionals who have an ongoing engagement with the girls, like youth workers, and with their parents too. ( CY)
Wider influences: Personal experience and history
- The emotional context, issues around self worth all come out in discussion of sexual history. You hear about the context of sexual experiences, in that they tell you about their vulnerability - when they think behaviour is normal. ( CY)
Wider influences: Educational attainment
- Awareness is key to planning. You have to pitch the language you use. ( CY)
- A lot of the young people we work with have been failed by education. They have been excluded, not attended, missed PSE lessons. They are often fearful in terms of education. We tailor our approach and work over a number of short sessions instead of trying to do it all in one two hour session. This allows us to build relationships and most importantly trust. ( CY)
- They do differentiate in respect of pupils abilities. As a teacher it is evident that they prepare thoroughly for sessions and can also think on their feet and adapt sessions if need be (S)
- I don't think I would be saying anything controversial in noting that many of our young offenders have limited educational qualifications and some have specific learning difficulties. I have found that the Caledonia Youth staff are respectful of this and try to engage the prisoners at a level they feel comfortable. (S)
Wider influences: Family structure and relationships
- A lot of the young people we are engaging with come from chaotic families that are in need of support. ( CY)
- Through doing an initial consultation you can begin to tease out who is at home. You get an indication of family closeness and the likelihood of the family ever having had discussions about health. ( CY)
- Family experience of domestic abuse, of dominant/bullying male figures all impacts on girl's self esteem and self worth. There are deeply embedded cultural issues. ( CY)
Wider influences: Media influences and media literacy
- It provides the cultural background to young people's lives. ( CY)
- I used a recent comment from a young person in a power point presentation that basically stated that media representations suggest that sex is compulsory for young people. ( CY)
- We will utilise the media in some instances if we feel that it highlights an issue that is worth exploring or will open up discussion. Clips from soaps can be helpful with this as young people watch them and they are good for creating discussion ( CY)
- We know that the media has a big influence over the young people we are working with. The example I would give would be a group of young guys I was working with recently who would speak about different porn films and things like bestiality but when I started asking them about basic stuff, puberty for example, their knowledge was really thin on the ground. We know that the language and issues young people pick up through the media can often mask a real lack of basic understanding and this is something we always try to address ( CY)
- We're all playing catch up. Information gets to young people more easily. But CY needs to improve its web site. (S)