Jenny Pearce, Professor of Young People and Public Policy at the University of Bedfordshire, UK, and John Coleman, Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Education at Oxford University, Parenting teenage victims and perpetrators of violence: lessons rom research on prevention and support, Expert Consultation on Family and Parenting Support, UNICEF Office of Research – Innocenti Florence 26-27 May 2014

1. Jenny.Pearce@beds.ac.uk
Professor of Young People and Public Policy:
International Centre Researching Child Sexual Exploitation,
Violence and Trafficking
UNICEF Office of research –
Innocenti, Florence
Expert Consultation on Family and
Parenting Support
Pearce,JJ (2013) 'Contexualising Consent in child sexual exploitation' in Melrose, M and Pearce, J (2013) Critical
Perspectives on Child Sexual Exploitation. Palgrave Macmillan

2. I WENT WITH 26 MEN LAST WEEK
I WILL KEEP DOING IT UNTIL YOU LET
ME SEE MY MUM
Pearce,JJ (2013) 'Contexualising Consent in child sexual exploitation' in Melrose, M and Pearce, J
(2013) Critical Perspectives on Child Sexual Exploitation. Palgrave Macmillan

3. UNDERSTANDING CONSENT: A SOCIAL MODEL
Pearce,JJ (2013) 'Contexualising Consent in child sexual exploitation' in Melrose, M and Pearce, J (2013) Critical
Perspectives on Child Sexual Exploitation. Palgrave Macmillan

4. Main themes
Policy Disconnect :
– parenting interventions // not connected with // preventative
sexual violence interventions with young people
Knowledge disconnect:
– between child protection (preventing sexual abuse in the family)
and youth centred preventative interventions (preventing sexual
violence during adolescence)

5. Firmin, C (2013) ‘Something old or Something New?’

6. What’s Known
1. Parents and families may receive parenting support for child
protection or youth justice interventions
2. Young people may receive (gendered ?) youth empowerment
support as part of sexual health, crime prevention interventions in
schools away from parents/families
3. Families of young people most at risk of sexual violence are most
marginalised from services
4. Substitute and alternative parenting is important: Young people ‘in
care’ (particularly institutional care) most vulnerable to sexual
violence, including peer on peer sexual violence

7. Lessons from evaluation of parenting/ family
support preventing sexual violence against children
• The family/parent/ community representative
may not be the best first point of contact
• Access can be best facilitated through
neighbourhood, local community networks over
time
• Parents (including substitute parents) and young
people ask for shared understanding and
communication