Ep. 41: Reducing Knife Crime in London - How one teenager is mentoring the Met Police

Today is the first in a mini-series with The Girl's Network [https://www.thegirlsnetwork.org.uk/], a UK mentoring charity set up to inspire and empower girls from the least advantaged communities by connecting them with a mentor and and a network of professional female role models. Helen Wills speaks to Ishrat Hussain about how being mentored through the Girl's Network has led to her becoming a mentor herself at the age of 18 - and to a senior member of the Met Police in London! We talk about gang culture and knife crime in one the most disadvantaged areas of London, Newham, where Ishrat grew up. Ishrat knew two teenagers who have died in the last year as a result of knife crime. Ishrat's family immigrated to the UK from Bangladesh in the 1970s. Her mum got her involved in local politics from a young age, taking her to polling stations. Now Ishrat has a place at University to study politics, and is hoping to engage in community lobbying and activism to influence outcomes for young people in communities like hers. Listen to the podcast to hear her remarkable insights into why there is such distrust between young people and the police in her community, and what she thinks needs to be done about it. About the Met Police scheme with the Girl's Network The Met Police got involved with the Girl's Network in 2018, providing female mentors for teenage girls in the least advantaged communities, but the process has now been reversed with the launch of a girl-led mentoring scheme for the police. The objective is for these young women to have their voices heard, gain a platform, develop their confidence, and represent their communities. Ishrat says "Two years ago I was shy and lacked confidence. Now I am mentoring senior officers at the Met Police as part of a pilot campaign." If the scheme is a success, it will be rolled out across other London boroughs. More on London's knife crime problems * The Conversation [https://theconversation.com/knife-crime-causes-and-solutions-editors-guide-to-what-our-academic-experts-say-113318] - causes and solutions to knife crime * Government knife crime strategy report [https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/mopac_knife_crime_strategy_june_2017.pdf]2017 More teenage parenting tips from Helen Wills: Helen wills is a teen mental health podcaster and blogger at Actually Mummy [https://www.actuallymummy.co.uk/] a resource for midlife parents of teens. Thank you for listening! Subscribe [https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/teenage-kicks-podcast/id1501488455] to the Teenage Kicks podcast to hear new episodes. If you have a suggestion for the podcast please email teenagekickspodcast@gmail.com. There are already stories from fabulous guests about difficult things that happened to them as teenagers - including losing a parent [https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/how-do-you-cope-loss-parent-when-youre-teenager-ryan/id1501488455?i=1000495564421], becoming a young carer [https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/danielle-on-being-a-young-carer-for-her-alcoholic-mum/id1501488455?i=1000468538022], and being hospitalised with mental health problems [https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/emma-bradley-on-being-hospitalised-mental-health-problems/id1501488455?i=1000470008123] - and how they overcame things to move on with their lives. You can find more from Helen Wills on parenting teenagers on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/iamhelenwills/] and Tw [https://twitter.com/iamhelenwills]

Om Podcasten

Welcome to the Teenage Kicks podcast, where we take the fear out of parenting - or becoming - a teenager. The internet is full of parenting advice, from when you feel those first baby kicks, until they reach secondary school. And then it stops. No one is talking about teen parenting problems; so we’re going to. Essential listening for teenagers and their parents, as well as those who work with young adults; Teenage Kicks has teen mental health at its core, and each episode will empower young people to tackle their own problems, and give parents the guidance to know how to help them. Each week Helen speaks to real individuals who've experienced the issues that young people are dealing with now, and they don't sugar-coat it. From exam nerves and career worries to issues around sexuality and consent, we get tips and advice from expert guests who understand what it’s like to be a teenager today. Helen will also be chatting about tough teenage problems like cyberbullying and self-harm, drugs, alcohol and teenage pregnancy, all with a heavy dose of reality from someone who's been there and made it through to the other side. Teenage Kicks for Parents: As parents, we understand some of our kids’ struggles, but let’s face it, it’s been a while, and things have moved on since we last panicked over a detention! Teenage choices today can seem alien to their parents because teenage life has changed so dramatically since we were young. Teenage Kicks helps you unravel topics like social media, sexting and teen self-esteem so that you can figure out what your child needs support with, and what’s just normal teenage behaviour.   Teenage Kicks for Teens: Teenagers and parents come at things from different angles, we know. But teenage life can be challenging, and the support of your parents can make navigating tricky dilemmas easier. Teenage Kicks guests aren’t adults who’ve read a textbook; nor are they heavily invested in your day-to-day safety, like your mum and dad. They are real people who’ve been through what you’re dealing with, and they have the inspiration and advice you need to handle it yourself. Join Helen each week as she chats to a different guest about topics affecting teenagers in 2020, and helps parents and teens to open up a dialogue that will make life easier to navigate on all sides. You'll also find me chatting about teen parenting here: * Actually Mummy [https://actuallymummy.co.uk/] - my personal blog * Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/iamhelenwills/] * Twitter [https://twitter.com/iamhelenwills] Useful websites: * The Mix [https://www.themix.org.uk/]- good information for under 25's * Shout [https://www.giveusashout.org/] - for anyone struggling with anxiety or depression This series of the Teenage Kicks Podcast is sponsored by Blue Microphones [https://www.blue-designs.co.uk/], who gave me the fabulous Yeticaster mic for all my recordings. It's really straightforward to use, and gives me great sound quality without too much editing.