Kayleigh film to help teach young about dangers of being online
Film about murdered schoolgirl to help others
THE story of murdered schoolgirl is to be told to Leicestershire schoolchildren through a new film warning about the dangers of online grooming.
Kayleigh’s Love Story tells the tale of the last two weeks of the 15-year-old’s life and was launched by Leicestershire Police alongside the Measham schoolgirl’s parents.
The five minute film, which was shot on location in Leicestershire in February this year and involved a professional cast, will be shown over the coming days in Ibstock, Measham and Coalville, and then, from September onwards, the film will be screened by a team of specialist multi-agency staff to all school children aged 11 upwards across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, as well as being made available to police forces nationwide.
Kayleigh’s mother Stephanie said: “We will never again see our beautiful daughter Kayleigh. We won’t be able to cuddle her, to care for her, or be able to protect her.
“My heart aches every minute of every day. So does Martin’s and Kyle’s, the hearts of our other children and of all those who knew and loved Kayleigh.
“Our world changed forever the day that Kayleigh received that Facebook message.
“But we are determined that Kayleigh lives on, and not just in our hearts.
“We want her to help protect children – today and in the future.
“When the police asked us, last December, if they could make a film about Kayleigh, we didn’t hesitate to give them our total support. “We wanted this film made. “It serves as a warning - to children and to parents – of the very real dangers of online grooming.
“We want every child aged 11 and upwards to see this film, both in this country and abroad.
“Because this film is our beautiful daughter’s tragic legacy”.
Eddie Green, headteacher at Ashby School where Kayleigh was a pupil, said: “Across the county and indeed across the country schools are talking to students about e-safety and the need to be careful and vigilant about who you meet and communicate with on line. There are some very good, high quality materials available, but despite the best efforts of many schools, too many young people are still in communication with and meeting up with people they don’t know.
“The consequences for Kayleigh were extreme and sadly she paid the ultimate price, but it provides a very important message for all our young people that it can happen to you.
“What is different about this film is that it is powerful, it is emotional, it is hard-hitting, but above all it is true. It tells the story of a Leicestershire girl and the sequence of events leading up to her tragic murder.
“I would encourage all schools in our county, in our region and indeed across the country to show this if they have secondary age students.”
Deputy Chief Constable Roger Bannister said: “We must all do what we can to protect children. One way of achieving that is to ensure that as many people as possible know what happened to Kayleigh, that they understand the signs that a child may be in danger and is being groomed, and that we take appropriate steps to safeguard children.
“I hope this film will enable Kayleigh to live on and to help protect children from being groomed. This is Kayleigh’s legacy.”
A trailer for the film can be viewed at www.hinckleytimes.net