Investing in relationships and sex education in schools to reduce violence against women and girls

Countering “a culture of fear”

As part of a panel on the London Assembly Police and Crime Committee last week, Professor Ringrose warned the London Assembly about the growing chasm between adults and young people. Young people, she says, are often afraid to report sexual harassment and violence to schools or parents for fear of getting into trouble. 

She says that future work should address why young people find it difficult to report instances of abuse, which often stem from a lack of understanding of legislation around sexual violence. 

“It becomes difficult to safeguard in an environment... where young people think they’ve done something wrong”, she says. 

RSE that explains the legal technicalities of the law is one step forward to countering what she calls, “a culture of fear” around reporting sexual violence. 

Drawing from her research with Surrey Police, Professor Ringrose notes the potential of restorative justice and other forms of reengagement that are not focused on criminalisation or punitive measures.  

Her interviews with the police have also revealed that many officers are not familiar with the nuances of the legislation, which makes it more difficult to share this information with young people during visits to schools, highlighting the necessity of educating adults on the law as well.

A whole-school approach to RSE

Professor Ringrose advocated for a whole-school approach to relationships and sex education in schools to tackle the “culture-wide issue” of misogyny, sexual harassment and gender-based violence 

Drawing from the findings of her international study of RSE in Canada, Ireland and England, Professor Ringrose highlights that more than half of young people report that they have never learned about sexual violence in schools – yet RSE is typically “the most poorly resourced subject area”, making government funding and support of RSE even more crucial. 

High-quality, statutory RSE would tackle issues like the importance of consent, as well as the ways sexuality interacts with power imbalances and inequalities like gender, class and race. 

With the rise of misogyny influencers that indoctrinate boys by exploiting economic vulnerabilities, developing young people’s understanding of gender dynamics early on could also counteract the allure of regressive and toxic masculinity. 

Examples of RSE in action would include preventive workshops that challenge gender misinformation, develop critical thinking and media literacy, and discuss how regressive masculinity politics and backlash against feminism is linked to the rise of the far right globally. 

Professor Ringrose’s past work includes workshops with young men that focus on positive masculinity across different cultural contexts in collaboration with Beyond Equality. She says these workshops enable boys to unpack their feelings around vulnerability and defensiveness and to reflect on their online and offline behaviour. 

RSE could also strengthen young people’s digital literacy; with the rise of AI technology like deepfakes, questions around consent are important topics that must be addressed in schools.

Professor Ringrose says, “There are really worrisome trends [in deepfake apps], but the issue still goes back to high-quality RSE, since digital literacy covering AI should also foreground teaching young people about consent around images."

Through this preventative, whole-school approach, beginning RSE early would not only create a safer environment for young people, but also for teachers, who have noted experiences of misogyny and harassment from pupils, senior management and fellow teachers. 

There should also be a focus on upskilling teachers in this area, says Professor Ringrose, who notes that teachers want to help young people but often lack the skillset required to offer the best support for young people with trauma and informed safeguarding as part of responding to issues emerging from RSE. 

She emphasises the importance of professional development and resources for teachers that focus on awareness and support strategies. This is underscored by her work leading sexual violence and bystanding workshops with 1200 young people across England, Ireland and Canada, insights from which led to the development of free teacher training modules developed with Life Lessons. 

Professor Ringrose also spotlights the need for more digital literacy – not just for young people, but for the adults in their lives as well. 

More engagement between parents and schools could work to develop adults’ understanding of the most harmful apps for children, assist in safeguarding and open up discussions between guardian and child. 

Links

• Watch the recording (from 1:47:00): Police and Crime Committee 26 February 2025 

• The impact of violence against women and girls on young Londoners: London Assembly

• In the media: reported in BBC News and Women’s Health 

• Professor Jessica Ringrose’s UCL profile 

• Centre for Sociology of Education and Equity

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London Assembly live stream, Police and Crime Committee, 26 February 2025.