LGBT Youth Charter of Rights
You want to include LGBT young people but you don't know where to start?
Well, look no further!
Kathleen Marshall, Scotland's Commissioner for Children and Young People says:
"If you provide any kind of service to the community the LGBT Youth Charter of Rights and its accompanying free toolkit will provide you with a mechanism by which you can ensure that you are meaningfully engaging with and including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people"
The LGBT Youth Charter of Rights sets a benchmark for the mainstreaming of equal rights for LGBT young people.
LGBT Youth Scotland is committed to supporting organisations which aim to:
· Identify, adopt and promote good practice
· Ensure that they are fulfilling their legislative obligations
· Learn to challenge homophobia, and talk about issues facing LGBT young people in a non-threatening way
· Diversify and improve the quality of their service
· Set themselves apart as a centre of excellence in LGBT inclusion.
Registered organisations will aim to achieve the LGBT Youth Charter Mark through training, partnership working and through our Charter Toolkit and online resource bank. All you need to do is click this <link> and register now to order your free Charter Toolkit and to start the journey towards including LGBT young people.
You can download a copy of the LGBT Youth Charter of Rights document by clicking <here>.
16.1 Start Here: Register
Welcome to the LGBT Youth Charter of Rights Order Form
Here you can order everything you need to start the LGBT Youth Charter of Rights process.
By ordering the Charter and Toolkit you are not only promoting good practice but are also ensuring that the inclusion of LGBT young people is at the centre of your work.
To order the LGBT Youth Charter of Rights and the Toolkit is absolutely free!
If you have any problems with this form please email us on info@lgbtyouth.org.uk or call our admin team on 0131 622 2266.
Thank you for your interest, if you have any suggestions please let us know via the Contact Us section above.
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16.2 Step 1: The LGBT Champion
To start your journey towards achieving an LGBT Youth Charter Mark, you are encouraged to identify an LGBT Champion within your organisation.
It must be stressed that this person does not have to be LGBT themselves, and should not be the only person with responsibility for addressing LGBT issues or working towards the LGBT Youth Charter Mark – having a whole organisation approach to including LGBT young people and mainstreaming equalities is crucial to the success and impact of the work.
Rather, your Champion should be someone who will:
· Make other staff and users aware of the Charter Mark process – why you are doing it, what you will be doing and how you are getting on
· Lead discussions with colleagues on how to implement the Charter Mark process within the organisation
· Ensure that the work is taken forward, and monitor its progress
· Link with LGBT Youth Scotland when help is required.
Organisations may decide to share this responsibility between individuals, or even create an “Equality/LGBT Champions Group” which is made up of users as well as staff.
For larger organisations, the LGBT Champion should ensure that the Charter Mark is rolled out throughout the entire organisation, right to its smallest units, and may choose to identify a team of Champions to ensure that this occurs.
However the work is developed and rolled out, it is important to remember that the Charter Mark Scheme is intended to show LGBT young people and other users that equality and inclusion are at the heart of the organisation's ethos, therefore the work should be targeted at a very grass roots level, where young people are accessing services and opportunities.
To find out which qualities LGBT young people feel you should have as LGBT Champion, click <link>
16.3 Step 2: LGBT Awareness Training
LGBT YOUTH CHARTER
Signed up to the charter process? We can help you on your way to charter status by providing high quality personal and professional development training. Read below to find out more.
Our Training Service & Experience
LGBT Youth Scotland's training service provides training for professionals throughout Scotland. We have over 5 years’ experience in developing and delivering training and aim to provide a participative approach to training which seeks to raise confidence and competence in dealing with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues.
Our training experience includes the delivery of training to:
· Crown Office
· Lothian & Borders Police
· Glasgow City Council Education Services & Social Work Services
· Dumfries & Galloway Council: Teachers, Youth Workers & Registrars
· Health Professionals; including SHARE trained practitioners
· Trainee Community Education practitioners & Trainee Social Workers
Training Session Aims & Topics
We can offer a series of training sessions on raising LGBT awareness, challenging homophobia, mainstreaming equalities and LGBT rights, sexual health and relationships education and including LGBT young people.
We can also develop and deliver tailored training that directly meets the needs of your organisation. Our training service aims to be as informal and interactive as possible and we always aim to meet participants at their level of understanding and knowledge.
As an example, the key learning objectives of our LGBT Awareness training module are to:
· Build competence and confidence when addressing LGBT issues;
· Promote the inclusion and integration of LGBT issues into day to day services and the working environment;
· Create an awareness of our own values and attitudes and;
· Develop good practice to promote inclusive and positive citizenship.
For more information vist our Training Service webpage or to arrange a consultation, contact our Training Manager, info@lgbtyouth.org.uk
16.4 Step 3: Specialist Services for LGBT Young People
There are comparatively few local authority areas in Scotland which provide specialist services for LGBT young people. This is despite the fact that going along to a group where you can be yourself and share common interests and experiences is an opportunity which is valued by most people, gay and straight alike.
Those groups which do run, however, often provide a range of services, such as group work, advice and support and volunteering. In addition, the National LGBT Youth Council is made of LGBT youth representatives from across Scotland, most of whom are willing and able to support you on your journey towards your LGBT Charter Mark.
It is important that you make young people aware of specialist services where they do exist, and offer them support to access them if they feel they would like to. Not all young people will opt to go along to an LGBT youth group, but it is crucial that they are given the choice.
Similarly it is useful to make links with your local specialist LGBT organisation in case there are any young people there who would value the opportunity to access your services. A strong referral mechanism between organisations is essential to ensuring that young people are given appropriate support and services at the time when they need them most.
To find out where your nearest specialist service is, click on the picture above to be taken to our list of LGBT youth groups in Scotland.
If there is no specialist service in your area, and you would like to set one up, get in touch with LGBT Youth Scotland and we can offer you some support and advice.
16.5 Step 4: Positive Images of LGBT Young People
Having positive images of LGBT young people demonstrates your commitment to supporting and including LGBT young people. It sends a clear message that being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender is okay.
For many LGBT young people the lack of visible positive messages reinforces feelings of isolation and exclusion. They may be reluctant to access support or services, such as attending the local youth group, for fear of being bullied.
A step towards combating discrimination and challenging the assumption that everyone is heterosexual, would be to display positive messages about LGBT young people, their families and friends; making the invisible visible.
To make a start, you can order LGBT Youth Scotland's Poster and Leaflet resource. Click on the link above to the resource order form to find out more. On the resource page you can also order the Charter Pack. This includes a selection of resources to support you through the Charter Mark process.
16.6 Step 5: Info & Resources for LGBT Young People
Access to high quality information and resources is crucial for LGBT young people to live happily, knowledgably and confidently. The majority of information and resources developed for young people make no mention of lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender issues. This section of the resource bank will show you some LGBT specific information and resources which you can make available for the young people within your organisation.
LGBT Youth Scotland Resources
LGBT Youth Scotland offers a number of resources which can be used by both young people and workers in organisations. These professionally produced reports address issues such as including LGBT young people in your work, homophobic bullying and ways to tackle it, volunteering, LGBT sexual health and a coming out guide for young women.
By displaying these resources in a prominent place and directing young people towards them you will be:
· Providing much needed high quality information for LGBT young people
· Sending out the message to all young people that these issues are important and that your organisation is LGBT friendly.
Click <link> to go straight to our resource order form.
The LGBT Youth Scotland Website
Because anyone can set up a website, high quality information is sometimes difficult to find on the Web. As a result, the LGBT Youth Scotland website is a good starting point when looking for information and resources for LGBT young people. We provide information produced both internally by experienced and knowledgeable staff members and links to external websites, agencies and support services.
From the homepage you can access Advice, information about News and Events and LGBT youth groups through our Your Area page. For young people, often the best information can come from their peers who are experiencing the same things – let them know that they can chat to other LGBT young people on our Get Involved section of the website.
If you are having problems accessing the site in your organisation this may be because filtering software is blocking access. For more information about this and what to do about it, have a look at the Accessing the LGBT Youth Scotland Website section of the resource bank.
16.7 Step 6: Accessing the LGBT Youth Scotland Website
The World Wide Web is an unregulated space which contains vast amounts of information on millions of websites. As a result, it is often easy to come across material and images which some may find offensive or damaging. Internet safety and managing young peoples' Internet access has become commonplace in recent years and is something which almost all organisations do, both out of concern for child protection and to protect themselves legally.
Filters and how they work
Organisations use filtering software to block user access to certain websites. Filtering software blocks unwanted material and stops it being displayed on the computer screen. Ideally, filters should block unwanted content while taking into account the contexts in which words are used and the ambiguities which words can have. This is rarely the case – crude filtering software packages are generally bought off the shelf with little thought given to the actual content being blocked. For example, a website containing information about breast cancer might be blocked because of the word “breast”. Similarly, LGBT Youth Scotland's website is, more often than not, blocked in schools, public libraries, youth groups and other youth settings.
When access to the LGBT Youth Scotland website is blocked, young people in your organisation miss out on valuable support, information and opportunities.
There are two types of filter. One blocks according to certain words on web pages. Another type blocks the URL or domain (address) of particular web pages.
Black list: A hidden, default list of blocked words or sites come with the software package. Supplied block lists cannot be altered but can be added to.
White list: A revealed list of blocked words or sites: more word or site amendment is possible. However, it depends on the package and on whether the user of the package is willing to amend the list.
What can I do about this? How can I make sure that young people gain access to the LGBT Youth Scotland website?
Generally, decisions regarding ICT and filters will be made at top level and passed down through the organisation.
· Find out who is responsible for the filtering software used on the computers in your organisation and get in touch with him or her. Depending on the type of software used, it may be a simple case of asking for the LGBT Youth Scotland website to be unblocked.
· If this is not possible, write a letter to whoever is most influential in your organisation explaining the situation and requesting that they take action.
We understand that this will not always lead to the site being unblocked. However, it is important that an attempt is made: at the very least, it will highlight the problem.
Supporting Young People to Access the LGBT Youth Scotland Website Elsewhere
If you are still unable to gain access to the LGBT Youth Scotland website in your organisation then you can support young people to access the LGBT Youth Scotland website on computers elsewhere which do not have filters installed.
· Let them know about the information, support and opportunities available on the website and write down the web address for them to access at a later date: http://www.lgbtyouth.org.uk
· Be aware that some young people accessing the LGBT Youth Scotland website may not want others to know about it. Alert them to the following features which will help to protect their privacy and safety.
Emergency Exit: All pages on the website have an Emergency Exit button which they can click to immediately exit the website.
Deleting History and Cache: If someone knows how to read a computer's history or cache file (automatically saved web pages and graphics), they may be able to see information recently viewed on the Internet. Depending on the browser used to display web pages, there are different ways in which this information can be deleted:
· Internet Explorer: Pull down Tools menu, select Internet Options. On General page, under Temporary Internet Files, click on Delete Files. Under History click on Clear History.
· AOL: Pull down Members menu, select Preferences. Click on WWW icon. Select Advanced. Purge Cache.
· Firefox: Go to Tools and click on Options. Click the Privacy button and under History click the Clear button.
16.8 Step 7: LGBT Friendly Policy
As part of the process of including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) young people in what you do, it is important to have policies that reflect their experience and challenge discrimination.
To do this, this section of the LGBT Youth Charter Toolkit provides you with a Policy Guide which offers:
· Summaries of relevant legislative and policy developments which have an impact on the lives of LGBT young people
· Signposts to websites and guides which offer more detailed information about changes in the law
· Examples of organisational policies which include LGBT young people
To download our Policy Guide click on the picture above. To enquire further about policy issues in relation to LGBT young people, email policy@lgbtyouth.org.uk
16.9 Step 8: Challenging Prejudice
"Things were thrown at me in the street and the walls of my parents' house were spray painted with stuff about me."
"It was tough cos I was bullied. I was picked on so I kept bunking off school. I went to the Headteacher but nothing happened. I left as soon as I could."
Prejudice and the fear of prejudice is one of the single biggest issues for LGBT young people in Scotland today.
Guidance on Dealing with Homophobic Incidents
LGBT Youth Scotland recently published Scottish Executive commissioned research into homophobic incidents in Scottish schools. This study showed that awareness of and experience of homophobic bullying was very high amongst young people and many stated strongly professionals must take that homophobia more seriously.
Similarly, a 2005 study carried out by LGBT Youth Scotland and the University of Strathclyde with LGBT young people from across Scotland found that 50% of young people had been verbally assaulted, 20% of young people had been physically assaulted and 10% of young people had been sexually assaulted, all as a direct result of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Homophobia socially excludes young people, and can leave them isolated and in fear of attack and ridicule. This cannot fail to have an impact upon a young person's mental health and educational attainment.
“I felt as if I was a bad person and I couldn't talk it over with anyone, I tried to kill myself …” (Male, 16 yrs old)
“I just get distracted by it and can't concentrate on my work.” (Female, 14 yrs old)
Although LGBT young people often experience discrimination, these studies show that their expectations of someone being able to help is sadly very low. Very few of the young people who had been homophobically bullied at school had reported it to staff due to a fear of “coming out” and the belief that they would not understand or might be hostile to issues surrounding sexual orientation and homophobia.
This has been reinforced by work carried out with professionals who often feel uncomfortable with the issues themselves, under-resourced or generally ill-equipped to raise LGBT issues and challenge homophobia within their organisation.
By working through the sections of the Charter Toolkit you will already have gone a long way towards ensuring that LGBT young people feel included within your organisation. However, this section of the site aims to give you some practical dos and don'ts tools to effectively challenge discrimination and create an environment where diversity is celebrated.
Dos
· Do make sure your staff and volunteers feel confident in dealing with the issues: visit our training section for specific modules on LGBT awareness and challenging homophobia
· Do create an environment where LGBT issues can be raised in a constructive way: put up posters of LGBT people; talk about a gay author in English class; discuss an LGBT plot line from a TV series or movie
· Do run specific sessions on challenging prejudice and raising LGBT issues. If you don't feel confident running the sessions yourself, contact LGBT Youth Scotland – there may be staff or young LGBT people in your area who would be able to undertake some joint work. If not, we may be able to give you suitable session plans which you can run yourself.
· Do use policies and procedures to back you up: equal opportunities policies; discipline procedures for staff & young people; and complaints procedures are all useful when challenging prejudice.
· Do involve young people and other colleagues when creating group agreements and other procedures. Make sure everyone understands and has a say in identifying acceptable and unacceptable behaviour, and the sanctions for dealing with rule breaking etc. If you click on the picture above you can download LGBT Youth Scotland's Rights and Responsibilities Procedure for young people.
· Do be specific when challenging prejudiced behaviour, stating exactly what happened, why it was unacceptable and what you are going to do about it, for example: "John, you called Jane a dyke, which is not acceptable. You know that we don't tolerate homophobic behaviour in our group which is something that we all agreed to in our code of conduct. Calling people names can be really hurtful and I'm sure you wouldn't like it to happen to you. This is your first warning, but if you use that kind of language again, you risk being excluded from the group".
Don'ts
· Don't close down conversation about LGBT issues if young people want to discuss it – people remain ignorant of issues unless they are given the chance to explore them
· Don't tolerate homophobic language used by either young people or colleagues. Even if it is not meant to cause direct offence to a specific person, discriminatory language colludes with and reinforces prejudiced behaviour and can cause real distress to an LGBT person who hears it.
Be consistent: make sure all staff challenge prejudice in the same way; make sure prejudice is always challenged and try not to let it slip. Although this may be hard work at the start, a consistent approach will ensure that the culture of your organisation can be changed from one of exclusion to one of inclusion.
For a useful guide to tackling bullying within youth settings click <link>
16.10 Step 9: Reaching Out to LGBT Young People
Many LGBT young people grow up feeling afraid that they will be rejected by family and friends or face prejudice, homophobic abuse or bullying if they are honest about their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Whether it is the fear of homophobia, or prejudice itself that excludes LGBT young people, or even the fact that they don't feel that their needs are being catered for, the fact remains that many LGBT young people do not feel able to access local services.
There is in increasing expectation that services should provide for and engage with all members of a community, however LGBT young people are a very difficult group to reach even in places like Glasgow and Edinburgh, where there is relative tolerance of diversity and established LGBT community infrastructure. In other areas, especially rural regions, social isolation is compounded by an absence of specialist services which makes LGBT people an almost invisible group.
Many organistions will argue, "We don't exclude anyone, but try to treat people the same". Well meaning as this is, the fact remains that we are all different, and therefore can't be treated in exactly the same way. Diversity as it exists in our communities should be celebrated, and services should be provided and targeted as much as possible in a way which reflects individual need. To achieve real equality of opportunity, sometimes special efforts must be made to equalise the playing field, in order to involve and engage socially excluded groups.
The key aspects of the engagement process are reaching out to young people, keeping up a level of contact and providing services which are relevant, safe and young person led.
LGBT Youth Scotland has over 15 years’ experience of involving LGBT young people, the lessons from which have been published in a series of action research reports all of which can be ordered by clicking the "resources" button on the right.
This work led to the development of a series of checklists for engaging with young people and ensuring their safety which can be downloaded <link>.
16.11 Step 10: Gathering the View of LGBT Young People
One of LGBT Youth Scotland's aims is to give LGBT young people a voice in the affairs of Scotland. Often, LGBT young people do not speak out about the things which concern them and the services which they receive because they may not feel confident that they will be listened to.
LGBT young people need to know that they can trust people like you before they will speak out. Although this isn't an overnight process, seeking the LGBT Youth Charter Mark is a big step forward as it demonstrates that you value the views and opinions of LGBT young people.
This section of the resource bank provides a few suggestions of ways in which you can gather the views of LGBT young people in your organisation and allow them to feedback their opinions to you.
Monitoring sexual orientation and gender identity
Really valuable research and consultation is often carried out with young people in organisations both on a formal and an informal basis but questions about respondents' sexual orientation and gender identity are rarely asked. This has a twofold effect:
· Although you may know that you have LGBT young people in your organisation or be aware that it is more than likely, asking these questions will give you a much clearer idea. Being unsure about these issues may mean that you do not always meet the needs of LGBT young people.
Refraining from asking these questions strengthens the silence which surrounds LGBT issues in society, a silence which can leave LGBT young people feeling isolated and ashamed. Asking questions like these and explaining why you are doing this shows young people that you think these issues are important and that you are able to talk about them.
Some young people may not want to answer these questions so be sure to provide a “prefer not to say” option – but if you don't ask they won't tell you!
Confidential ways of gathering the views of LGBT young people
Sometimes all that it will take to engage with LGBT young people will be to state clearly that the organisation is supportive and responsive to their needs and concerns and that you are open and able to speak about issues which might concern them.
However, some young people may not want to talk to you directly about issues relating to their sexual orientation or gender identity and may not want to be identified as LGB or T. You can still provide ways for them to feed their opinions back to you.
· Anonymous feedback box: Provide a locked box into which young people can submit their suggestions, concerns and opinions.
· Online feedback: Many organisations now have their own websites – provide a space where LGBT young people can feedback to you. Alternatively, set up an email address for feedback and allow young people to contact you anonymously.
To help you to gather the views and opinions of LGBT young people effectively click on the picture above – this will take you to a new publication from the NHS INCLUSION Project entitled Getting It Right: LGBT Research Guidelines.
By making the effort to gather the views and opinions of LGBT young people you will be gathering information about ALL young people in your organisation and improving the services which you provide.