The Age of Consent - I welcome cross party support to keep it at 16

Professor John Ashton, President of the Faculty of Public Health called for a national debate about the age of consent.  His argument, as reported in the Sunday Times, is society is sending confused signal about when sex is permitted. He said that if the legal age for sex was lowered to 15 it would draw a line in the sand against sex at 14 or even younger, and it would make it easier for 15 year olds in a sexual relationship to seek contraception and sexual health advice from the NHS.  Our confusion he adds means the 15 year olds are not getting clear routes to getting support.

Brook is the leading young people's sexual health charity in the UK.  We provide clinical and support services to  over a 1000 young people everyday. A sizeable proportion of those will be under 16 and in need of contraceptive and sexual health care.

Professor Ashton is absolutely right,  as a country we are confused about sex and sexuality and you just need to look at the range of messages young people get to see they do get mixed messages about sex and sexuality.  We see the result of that societal confusion everyday at Brook in the lack of information, embarrassment and pressure many young people have about their bodies and sex.  

The UK approach is still a little bit 'Carry On'.  I am therefore pleased Prof Ashton has raised the debate. I was very interested at the range of responses and I was particularly pleased that a cross party consensus emerged from the debate to keep the age of consent at 16.  That reflects the broad consensus that exists in the country: the age of consent is a good indicator of the age at which we think people will be mature enough to enjoy and take responsibility for their sexual decisions.  I was also pleased to see clear recognition, from Mr Clegg in particular, that good quality sex and relationships education is an important part of the answer to reducing confusion, improving sexual health outcomes and providing appropriate support and help for young people.

So what do young people tell us? 
They tell us they want it to remain at 16. They say it makes it clear when we think it is about the right time to have sex if they are ready.  Research tells us that between a 1/3 and a 1/4 of young people have sex before they are 16.  Many of these, of course, will be 15 3/4 year olds which means that between 2/3 and 3/4 don't have sex before the age of 16.

Young people also tell us that the Age of Consent a) sometimes feels a bit irrelevant if they have made a decision to have sex - then it is love and trust that counts b) some young people - particularly young women - tell us the age of consent can be a good negotiating tool if they don't want to have sex, and are being encouraged or feel pressured to by a partner c) they need to know they are highly unlikely they will be criminalised if they have consenting sex with somebody who is about the same age and d) every young person must know they have a legal right to access contraceptive advice and treatment even if they are under 16.

The law is currently designed to protect children and young people from exploitation and abuse. It is not designed to criminalise consenting sex between two young people of a similar age. There is plenty of evidence to suggest it is generally working as it should be.  If we reduced the age of consent to 15,  drew a line in the sand and actively discouraged 14 years from having sex as Professor Ashton suggests, we could feasibly be in the position where the law requires prosecution of two 14 year old which would be a much worse position than we currently have.

As it stands there is no legal reason that 15 years old should not be able to get the support they need if we educate well. Young people can access free, confidential advice and treatment even if they are under 16.  This is well established in case law when Lord Fraser made a ruling in the Gillick v Wisbech Health Authority case in 1986. The Fraser Guidelines set out the criteria that health professionals must follow to make a judgement about whether an under 16 year old can be provided contraceptive and sexual health treatment.  These Guidelines provide a very straightforward framework for health professionals to exercise judgement.

Yes, of course some young people may be put off accessing services if they are under 16 and having sex, but we know from determined efforts that through education and reassurance, through emphasising confidentiality and building trust we can ensure all young people feel confident accessing services.  A change in the law is not required to address that.

I was also interested that Professor Ashton is advocating a chain of health centres specialising in adolescent health.  As teenagers would attend the Centres for all health problems, the clinics would not be stigmatised as dealing primarily with contraception and sexual health he argues. Brook has almost 50 years of providing services that deal with sexual health primarily within the context of holistic health and well being.

Young people have told us they want us to deal with more issues, particularly emotional health and mental well being at Brook.  In response we have completed our first phase research - which tells us that yes they want a wider bundle of services but that must not detract from the contraception and sexual health service - are building strategic partnerships and will be launching and evaluating a pilot service in the North West to establish what that would offer, and importantly what impact it would have.  Watch this space.

It is argued that countries with a lower age of consent have lower rates of teenage pregnancy.  I don't make that causal link.  When i have visited and worked with colleagues from countries that have got this stuff right, they tend to have an open and positive view about sex and sexuality, parents and children are open in discussing sexual matters, good sex and relationships education is just a fact of life and young people are confident accessing sexual health services.

The national debate in the UK it seems to me should be how do we create a revolution that builds a positive and open culture about young people, sex and sexuality in the UK - we must strive for openness about sex and sexuality, high expectations within relationships, easy access to services, better communication about relationships and sex at home and at school with a real focus on consent and what it means to actively give and seek consent.  We must see sex and relationships education as part of the solution to the challenges of our time - sexualisation, easy access to online pornography, sexual exploitation and violence against girls.

There are changes we can all start making today, right now to drag ourselves into the 21st Century and ditch those lingering Victorian attitudes to sex.

My concern is that the debate about the Age of Consent filters onto young people's airways and what young people hear is 'you cannot access services if you are under 16 and so we need a change in the law'.  That must not be allowed to happen, so lets shout from the rooftops 'you can access services even if you are under 16s, tell your friends'.

Follow us @brookcharity @simonablake @besexpositive

Standing on the shoulders of brave people - LGBT History Month matters

Some people get weary of 'awareness days and months'.  Lets face it there are, to all of us, many that seem unnecessary or ridiculous, but are the most important thing in the world to others.  Just like Easter Eggs appear in the shops on Boxing Day, so too red ribbons for World AIDS Day appear before the moustaches have been shaved off for Movember.  And so we pick and choose what matters to us for what ever reason.

LGBT History Month starts today and it matters to me.  I'd like to think it would matter to me if I was a straight man, but who knows because I am not.  It matters because I am gay and because I have the privilege of living an open, proud and happy life and I know that is only possible because I am able to stand on the shoulders of those that went before me.  It also matters to Brook in achieving our mission of enabling ALL young people to enjoy their sexuality without harm, and diversity is one of our core values.

But it wasn't that long ago that being gay was illegal.  When I was growing up the age of consent was 21 (feels a long way off at 16) and then 18 before it was equalised at 16.  Section 28 was still on the statute books less than 15 years ago.  And it still remains sadly true that boys and girls are bullied and hurt because they are gay, bisexual or transgendered.  Unbelievably people continue to be killed in the UK - in fact less than 1/2 mile away from my flat in Clapham - and around the world because they are gay.

In the UK gay rights progressed at an astonishing pace under New Labour - equalising the age of consent, repealing Section 28, the introduction of civil partnerships and the Equality Duties.  Wonderful progress, but frighteningly recent.

I was involved in the policy and advocacy work to equalise the age of consent and repeal Section 28.  At the Stonewall party to celebrate the age of consent there were two elderly men - as they danced tears rolled freely down their cheeks and I spoke to them later - they had never imagined seeing the day that the age of consent would be equal and their love would be validated.    

Last month I was in New York to celebrate the wedding of two friends.  We went to Stonewall, now a quiet, comfortable relaxed bar - less than 50 years the place that police behaved brutally and triggered a response that would radically change the gay rights movement.  On that same street we played Gay Bingo with Vodka Slinger, our wonderful drag host.  Later that night the streets were full after karaoke and there was rightly no hint of fear.

But that safety now exists because there were brave, principled, moral people who demanded recognition, who refused to hide, who said I am that person who can be in the top job and were willing to dedicate, and sometimes sacrifice, their life to achieving the civil rights so many of us can now enjoy.

And there is no room for complacency - around the world the death penalty still exists.  I know that in the UK I will not be arrested for loving another man.  More than that I know that I have almost the same rights in almost all situations (giving blood aside) even if not everyone feels able to realise those but sex and relationships education still fails to address diverse sexualities adequately and some children are being bullied mercilessly .

So, for me LGBT month is an opportunity for Brook to do our bit to raise awareness of LGBT rights.  And I am delighted that a group of our young volunteers have published a booklet called the ABC of LGBT that has arrived from the printers today (look at @simonablake to see it in all its bright loveliness); that our teams across the country will be working hard to help young people celebrate and enjoy diversity.

At a policy level Brook will be urging MPs to support the Same Sex Marriage Bill, urging people to be sensible about what and how we will teach children about equal relationships and marriage, and being clear that the myths the Society Protection for Unborn Children are peddling in schools is scaremongering nonsense.

So LGBT History Month matters because it reminds us to celebrate the progress that has been made; reminds us to be grateful to those who have gone before us, dedicating and sometimes sacrificing their lives to achieve equal rights. It is also a time for personal quiet reflection and to be determined to stand on the shoulders of many before us and confidently shout Stonewall's slogans from every roof top we want Some People are Gay: Get Over It. 

Interesting reading

I have just finished reading two books that are interesting reads;

The biography of Harvey Milk - the first gay politician in San Francisco and 'Castro area revolutionary' who was murdered by a colleague in 1978 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvey_Milk)

As many areas of the world get real to the rights of gay people, we do well to remember that in some countries people are still sent to prison, as the couple were just this month in Malawi and we cannot be complacent waiting for someone else to fight on their behalf - it is the responsibility of all of us to stand up for their rights in whatever way we can. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/may/18/malawi-gay-couple-jailed

I have also just finished reading Impossible Motherhood - testimony of an abortion addict by Irene Vilar. It is a brave book which challenged some of my thinking and understanding in a number of ways. I recommend it.

Finally, see the interview with Sam Roddick in the Observer on Sunday http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/may/23/sam-roddick-coco-de-mer

I am delighted that Brook and our team of young volunteers are working with Sam and her colleagues to enable young people to enjoy their sexuality without harm. Sam talks about consent being at the Centre of a truly sexually liberated society and I completely agree that consent, learning that you have the right to consent which means saying no is central to young people's development. Our annual conference on 3rd March 2011 - Say yes, say no, say maybe - focuses on consent. Visit our website (www.brook.org.uk) for further information

The age of consent

Tomorrow Radio 4 will host a debate about the age of sexual consent, which is currently 16. Law professsor John Spencer is reported in the Daily Mail as being set to argue that the current age of consent criminalises 'half the population'.

The guidance to the Sexual Offences Act 2003 is very clear. The Act is not there to criminalise consensual sexual activity amongst young people, although I accept from many people who know far more about legislation than I do, that this Act is not the best conceptualised and leaves too much room for inequitable legislation. This is borne out in some of the calls and letters that I receive from anxious parents whose child has been the subject of unhelpful criminal investigation into consensual sexual activity.

I look forward to the debate tomorrow, but meanwhile I am with young people and Nick, my trainer at the gym who has in recent months become an active debater on teenage pregnancy, sexual assault, sex and the media, who when I asked him this morning what he thought about lowering the age of consent, thought it was probably best 'left as it is'. Even though he can see there is the potential pressure that people feel when they get to 16 to have sex if they have not done so already.

And herein lies at least some of the problem for me, the feeling amongst the young that everyone else is doing it more often, younger and in more daring ways. But to be honest this is not simply the domain of young people. As adults we too, are often consumed with the view that others are 'having it more and better'. And this is about our culture, not the law (although I know of course the law and culture are closely interlinked).

Research shows the practical reality of the age of consent for young people. In all you need is love? sexual morality through the eyes of young people published by National Children's Bureau, Sharpe and Thomson show that whilst the age of consent is not central in young people's decision making about whether and when to have sex - trust and love playing a much greater role - the age of consent does send a message to young people about when as a society we think is a reasonable age to have sex. I have also talked with many many young women and the professionals that work with them about the age of consent over the last decade. The resounding consensus from them is leave it as it is - it is a good negotiating tool that we can use to refuse to have sex should we want to use it.

So on that basis for now, as long as we have adequate safeguards which prevent young people under 16 who are engaged in consensual sexual activity from being criminalised, and those young people who have sex under 16 have access to contraceptive and sexual health services and feel confident using them, my view is lets keep it at 16. I look forward to the Radio 4 programme Iconoclasts tomorrow and listening to see whether there is anything that may make me consider changing my view.

In the meantime foot on the accelerator to create that positive open culture about sex and sexuality.

Celebrating 16 years in Northern Ireland

Yesterday Rachael Wyartt and I went to Stormont, the Northern Ireland Assembly Buildings, to celebrate 16 years of Brook in Northern Ireland, which coincided with the age of consent being reduced to 16 in line with the rest of the United Kingdom.

Brook aims to bring about real lasting social change - the work of the team in Northern Ireland has clearly done so. At the 10th birthday party, there were protestors outside - yesterday there weren't - signalling real progress and demonstrable impact.

Like in the rest of the UK, in Northern Ireland there is plenty of work to do for at least the next 16 years, and yesterday was an opportunity to reflect on how much has changed, and how proud Brook in Northern Ireland must be of its part in that change.