Bitter Sweet Sixteen
Volunteer Adelah Bilal, challenges the government’s Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checking of 16 to 18 year olds. As soon as Adelah celebrated her sixteenth birthday she would no longer be seen as a vulnerable member of society but a potential paedophile. In this report Adelah interviews Josie Appleton from the Manifesto Club who runs the Campaign Against Vetting and the parents of two small children to consider the impact of vetting. Adelah concludes that her generation are growing up under a cloud of suspicion and vetting will discourage her peers from developing their own judgement about who to trust.
Recommended links:
- Article by Patrick Hayes: If you’re 16, you’re a potential abuser
- Manifesto Club: Campaign: ‘The Case Against Vetting’
- Vetting under-18s: An education in mistrust
- Telegraph article: Nearly 127,000 children forced to have CRB checks every year
- Article by Jennie Bristow: Why parents should oppose vetting
Related topics: Civil Liberties
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Nuura said:
The government wants to make sure to prevent poissble paedophiles of targeting children/vulnerable people. We all respect that but doing checks on teens is to radical. The way that they going is the wrong one they should alarm soviety if there is a possible paedophile in your area, or the police should monitor paedophiles who have been arrested before or have shown suspicious behaviour. You can’t read a persons mind or find out what they are, so this whole system is a bit pointless.
xtina said:
Very interesting subject. Me personally, I’ve never had to have a CRB check. Probably because I haven’t worked with young or “vulnerable” people before. So the idea of vetting young 16 year old is shocking!
oalquimista said:
Unique perspective, challenging things that we all take for granted and pointing out a source of trust crisis exsiting in this society.Inspiring, cool.
kjahern said:
This is great, and hammers the old argument, if you’ve got nothing to hide you won’t mind being spied on. Quite simple answer to that, innocent until proven guilty, the basis of English law, i.e. if you’ve got nothing to hide you shouldn’t be spied on.
demidoughnut said:
Like the reporter in this video, I am currently sixteen and I think the thoughts she raised in this video were particularly interesting and insightful. There is lack of trust of strangers in the world and it was interesting to see the parents in the report speaking about the CRB checks and how it has affected them. I do not think the CRB checks should be for young people. I think it is taking away our freedoms and rights as young people. It shows that the government and police force do not have faith or trust us youths – I can understand why they do not yet I still do not think CRB checks for younger people is right. Great report.
TatjanaA said:
I don’t see a vetting as a huge problem, what I see a problem in is that people judging on a piece of a paper, not on instincts and relationships. Overall I liked the video, well informed and well done!
marcosha said:
Overall, Bitter Sweet Sixteen discusses very interesting issue in very polite way! However I believe it could have been illustrated the subject more effectively if it had been made less politely.