Dangerous policy undermines law on underage sex
PARENTS will be deeply unhappy to hear of the new Scottish Government guidance on underage sex, which effectively lowers the age of consent. As it stands, the law is clear: the age of consent is 16. However, the cult of confidentiality evident in the guidance is in danger of undermining that law.
It also risks children’s safety, as well as harming parents’ ability to protect and support their children.
The problem is that this guidance, while acknowledging the age of consent, effectively ignores it in practice as long as it is taking place in what is called ‘a safe and mutually respectful relationship’.
Such a policy is an invitation to young people to break the law and engage in underage sex, rather than teaching children to obey the law.
The emphasis on confidentiality in the guidance shows scant respect for the parents who are legally responsible for these children. If a young person under 16 is involved in sexual activity it raises serious health and safety concerns and parents should be informed.
Parents are the primary protectors of their children and are best placed to shield them from the harmful effects of underage sexual activity. There is a reason why we have an age of consent and that is to protect the most vulnerable.
The problem is that the law on the age of consent has been made virtually redundant by the failure of the authorities to take it seriously.
My organisation, the Family Education Trust, produced a report called Unprotected which examined serious case reviews from local authorities where abuse and exploitation of young people had taken place.
It found that in those areas, underage sex had frequently been viewed by the authorities as a normal part of growing up and relatively harmless as long as it was consensual.
We need to get away from that attitude. It is harmful for people to be involved in sexual activity under the age of consent. Even if it’s with a person of the same age, that doesn’t mean it’s not abusive.
A serious case review from Oxfordshire said confidentiality was put before protection and vulnerable teenage girls were treated as if they were sexually mature adults, allowing abuse to continue.
Another review found confidentiality was used inappropriately to excuse failures to act in cases of sexual abuse. We can see this cult of confidentiality can lead to serious harm in some cases.
This Scottish guidance presumes confidentiality is the best policy in the majority of circumstances.
The section dealing with underage sex makes one reference to parents, saying ‘parental support will in most situations be a crucial part of the picture’. That is positive but nonetheless parents are essentially given a subordinate role to practitioners – relegating them to secondary status.
Parents are the people who care most about their children and know them best, in a way a social worker or local authority safeguarding officer will not.
Parents are responsible for where their children are at any given time and they are most effective in regulating children’s behaviour and making sure they are not doing things or going to places where they could potentially be harmed.
Parents also want to help their children in difficult situations.
No one would want to see their child in trouble with the police – but they do want to see that their child is protected and know what their child is doing, especially if it’s something illegal.
Ultimately, parents need to be in a position where they can prevent their child from indulging in that type of activity. It is parents who are best placed to shield children from the harm that results from underage sexual activity.
We need to re-emphasise that the age of consent is 16 and that sex under that age is illegal. Local authorities, police, teachers and others with responsibility need to make that clear and not treat underage sex as if it were some kind of harmless recreational activity.