Great place to be a girl

Stirling has been ranked among the top places in the UK to be a girl in a new report by a children’s charity.

The area comes in at number five in the top ten, behind top place Orkney then East Renfrewshire, the Shetland Islands and Aberdeen.

The State of Girls’ Rights in the UK 2020 report by Plan International UK highlights how regional inequality means some are growing up with greater rights and access to opportunity than others, and it calls for action to boost equality.

According to the report, the worst place to be a girl is Falkirk followed by Inverclyde then North Lanarkshire.

A survey found six in 10 girls in Scotland (59 per cent) said they believe males are treated better than females in the UK.

More than half of the more than 1000 girls and young women aged 14-21 surveyed in Scotland (56 per cent) said they have personally encountered a situation where they believe they would have been treated better if they were male. Rose Caldwell, chief executive of Plan International UK, said: “As we enter 2020, it is encouraging to see that Scotland is leading the movement for giving girls greater access to opportunity and equality.

“But sadly our report finds that girls across the UK, including in Scotland, still feel disempowered and unable to realise their rights, with their potential largely determined by birthplace.

“Girls are told they can succeed, but they face a threat to their safety in public, online and in schools. They are told gender equality has been achieved, and yet they do not feel represented or heard by those in power.

“If adolescent girls are feeling undervalued, unheard and under-represented in public life, we as a society are letting them down. This simply cannot continue.

“The findings in this report should serve as a wake-up call for all politicians and leaders.”