School groping surge blamed on Internet porn: Third of sixth-form girls have been abused by classmates

Ann Coffey said a third of sixth-form girls had been touched inappropriately by boys in their school

Easy access to internet porn is behind a worryingly high number of girls being groped or sexually manhandled at school, an MP claimed yesterday. Ann Coffey revealed a third of sixth-form girls had been touched inappropriately by boys in their school.

The chairman of the all-party parliamentary group on runaway and missing children, put the blame firmly on the increasing impact of internet pornography, which she said was 'distorting' teenage boys' views of sex. She warned that many boys were developing 'harmful attitudes and behaviours' such as seeing girls simply as sex objects because they believe they have a 'sense of entitlement' to do what they want to them.

The MP called for sex and relationship education to be made compulsory in schools, saying the situation was so bad that boys had to be supported to form 'respectful attitudes to girls'. Unless the situation is changed, more girls would suffer 'physical and emotional harm', which could damage their education and future career prospects. The Daily Mail is campaigning for an automatic block on online porn to protect children from stumbling across it.

Over-18s would only be able to access adult images by 'opting in' with their Internet provider following a strict age verification check. Speaking during a debate on child sexual exploitation in the Commons, Miss Coffey cited a YouGov poll by the End Violence Against Women campaign, which surveyed 800 teenagers. It found 29 per cent of 16 to 18-year-old girls had suffered 'unwanted sexual touching' at school.

The Labour MP for Stockport said one of the main problems was boys accessing adult websites. 'We know harmful attitudes and behaviours are developed at a young age, and there is growing evidence about the impact of pornography on boys' attitudes to girls,' she said. 'It is a problem that boys are accessing adult websites which give them a distorted attitude about what is appropriate in terms of their relationships with girls.' It is compulsory in England for primary and secondary schools to teach the biological aspects of sex education, but not necessarily the broader subject of sex and relationships.

 

The Daily Mail is campaigning for an automatic block on online porn to protect children from stumbling across it. Over-18s would only be able to access adult images by 'opting in' (stock pic)

Almost as many, 28 per cent, said they had seen sexual images on mobile phones at school 'a few times a month or more'. And 71 per cent said they had heard sexual name-calling at school 'daily or a few times a week'. Some 40 per cent said they had never had lessons teaching them about the need for sexual consent. Miss Coffey said children should be taught what sexual coercion and exploitation is, as well as being alerted to signs of when they are being sexually groomed. She said lessons should also cover how to shape healthy relationships 'The focus needs to be on both boys and girls,' she said. 'Boys need to be supported to form positive and respectful attitudes to girls.'

Source: Daily Mail UK 

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