VoiceBlog

Sport Relief is just around the corner – What’s your school doing?

On Friday 14th March, thousands of you across the country will be putting your Sport Relief Socks on at school and getting involved, using everything that’s good about sport to change lives for the better. There are plenty of things your school council can still do, here are some ideas:

1. Order Sport Relief Socks using the Schools Sock Deposit Scheme. Schools can bulk order Socks at a deposit price and pay the remaining money after their event. A pair costs £2 with at least £1 going to Sport Relief. Visit sportrelief.com/schools.
2. Host a mile-long conga during lunchtime – students can pay to take part.
3. Football with a difference – teachers and students dress up as each other! Students can pay to watch.
4. Learn and perform a new sporty trick, perhaps samba or limbo-dancing. Invite and charge friends and family to watch.
5. Tell everyone at school to watch a brilliant weekend of TV on BBC ONE from 7pm on Friday 14th March.

Comic Relief spends the money you raise to help people living incredibly tough lives in the UK and abroad. If you’re still stuck for ideas then there’s a step by step guide with all the advice, ideas and tools you might need at sportrelief.com/school-councils.

If you have any questions, just email schools@sportrelief.com.

Children are Unbeatable campaign

Rachael Harrington (aged 18) writes: In the UK, hitting other people is illegal. It’s called assault. That is, unless the person you hit is a child. In that case it is called ‘reasonable punishment’, and as long as you don’t leave a mark, it is still legal. To me, this doesn’t make sense.

Surely everyone should have equal protection in the law? If anything, children need extra protection from violence, not less. “Smacking” means hurting a child on purpose, and this should not be something it is OK to do.

Some parents say that they have a right to hit their children and the state should not intervene. But parents don’t own their children. Violence against anyone, including anyone in the family, should be illegal and the state should intervene to stop people getting hurt.

There are lots of other reasons why hitting children should be banned. Firstly, adults need to set a good example for young children to follow. The idea that if someone does something you don’t like, you hit them, is surely not a message we want children to pick up. Also, the UK is behind lots of other countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and Spain, which have all made hitting children illegal. Thirdly, research has shown that parents often hit their children harder than they mean to. A complete ban on violence against children would help protect children from serious abuse.

News reports often include statistics on how many parents support smacking. Children’s opinions are rarely mentioned. This needs to change.

The Children are Unbeatable Alliance is a campaign to make hitting children against the law. They are looking for people, especially children, to get involved in their campaign. If you want to get involved you should contact Children are Unbeatable, on
phone/text: 07504 738 741
email: elinor@childrenareunbeatable.org.uk
website: www.childrenareunbeatable.org.uk/children