Thursday 10th of June 2021

Ofsted warns that sexual harassment is becoming ‘normalised’ among children 

    • Sexual harassment has become “normalised” among school-age children, a report by the watchdog Ofsted warns. 
    • Students often do not see the point of reporting abuse and many teachers underestimate the scale of these problems, the schools watchdog says. 
    • Boys are sharing “nudes”, while some girls have experienced “unwanted touching in corridors”. 
    • Women’s groups are calling for school staff to be trained to change the culture and for a UK government taskforce. 
    • Ministers say schools and colleges will be encouraged to dedicate training days to help staff deal with sexual abuse. 
    • For the full story, select here.  

     

    2,962 schools have now been named on Everyone’s Invited

    • Almost 3,000 schools have been named for the first time by Everyone’s Invited following allegations from students of rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment. 
    • It comes ahead of Ofsted publishing their findings on Thursday after the UK government asked the schools watchdog to look at safeguarding policies and experiences in schools and colleges earlier this year. 
    • In April, thousands of anonymous claims were being shared online, often on the Everyone’s Invited website which urges young sexual abuse survivors to share their stories and is growing all the time.
    • For the full story, select here. 

    Northern Ireland Department of Education issues warning over ‘cannabis sweets’

    • Schools in Northern Ireland have been asked to warn parents and staff about pupils eating sweets infused with cannabis oil.  
    • The Department of Education Northern Ireland (DENI) said a young child had to be assessed in hospital after they “inadvertently consumed cannabis” when eating the sweets. 
    • The warning came in a letter to all school principals from DENI. 
    • It said children could suffer hallucinations, nausea or vomiting if they ate the sweets. 
    • The department said it was writing to schools after receiving a warning from the Public Health Agency (PHA).
    • For the full story, select here. 

    TikTok will not be banned under Biden Administration 

    • President Joe Biden has revoked an executive order from his predecessor Donald Trump banning Chinese apps TikTok and WeChat in the US. 
    • The ban faced a series of legal challenges and never came into force. 
    • Instead, the US Department of Commerce will now review apps designed and developed by those in “the jurisdiction of a foreign adversary”, such as China. 
    • It should use an “evidence-based approach” to see if they pose a risk to US national security, Mr Biden said.
    • For the full story, select here.