We are excited to have been successful recipients from the London Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) Innovation grant! This grant will allow us to further the London VRU mission to reduce violence while supporting young people in London to have healthier relationships and navigate the social and emotional complexities of life.

Why RSHE is Key in Reducing Violence

To set the scene there has been extensive research into violence and harassment in schools. The Ofsted report found that 1 in 7 teenagers had seen sexual violence online and 1 in 12 teenage girls were sexual assault victims. Furthermore, nearly half of teenagers in London have been a victim or witness of violent crime in the last 12 months. 

However, there is a positive. Research conducted by the Youth Endowment Fund, has highlighted that evidence-based relationships and sex education is proven to lead to a 17% reduction in violence. Therefore, it is extremely important to work to empower young people through effective and compelling RSHE to change opinions and reduce violence. 

How Life Lessons Helps to Reduce Violence

At Life Lessons, our approach to RSHE is evidence based. 83% of our school partners who use Life Lessons resources for RSHE reported improved pupil oracy skills on RSE subjects. 

High quality RSHE is key to reducing youth violence. Through building empathy and critical thinking skills amongst young people, we allow young people to better understand the world around them and become more tolerant of others beliefs and differences. We are also passionate about ensuring that young people’s voices are front and centre in our method and resources. This aligns directly with the London VRU objective to ensure young people from London communities are actively discussing and creating content for RSHE lessons.

What we Hope to Achieve in this Project 

This project has two aims that Life Lessons and London VRU are looking to achieve:

  1. Violence prevention through effective RSHE curriculum 
  2. The development of empathy towards victims for those that are at risk of, or who have perpetrated violence.

Through this project we are thrilled to be partnering with 28 schools located in the 4 boroughs of London that have recorded some of the highest levels of violence affecting young people in London. We plan to split the support between all Pupil Referral Units (PRUs) and the largest of the mainstream secondary schools. Our goal is to reduce youth violence through the Life Lessons resources and RSHE lessons. 

How are we going to do this?

Putting Young People in London at the Forefront 

We put young people at the heart of relationships and sex education. Empowering young people to speak up is a vital part of reducing youth violence. Part of our work with London VRU will be setting up and coordinating youth advisory groups to learn what they think is needed to address violence and film original content based on their recommendations.

Empowering Teachers 

Empowering teachers to deliver outstanding RSHE is crucial to prevent youth violence. Through ongoing CPD and access to our platform we intend to build teacher confidence in delivering effective RSHE.

It is brilliant to be working in collaboration with the London violence reduction unit! We are excited to be working together to ensure more young people have access to evidence-based, high quality relationships, sex and health education to help improve their decision making skills and navigate the complexities of life. 

We are closely aligned that young people’s voices are at the heart of reducing violence affecting young people and that is a key part of this project. If you are a school in one of the selected boroughs of London, please get in touch! 

Want to Get Involved with London VRU? 

Are you passionate about schools and want to work with us on this project? Then we want to hear from you. 

As part of this project we are working with 4 boroughs across London 

  • Newham
  • Islington
  • Southwark
  • Tower Hamlets. 

If you are a school or alternative provision in these 4 boroughs, please get in touch with our co-founder Jamie at Jamie@lifelessons.co.uk to register your interest in being involved.