The Facts... without the Lecture
B4uDecide.ie is closing down at the end of May 2024.
Alternative sources of relationships and sexuality information and resources:
- For 16-25 year olds: SpunOut.ie is an information provision website, including relationships and sexuality issues.
- For 17+ year olds: Sexualwellbeing.ie is the HSE website that provides information and resources on a wide range of information such as consent, contraception, sexual transmitted infections, vaccinations and unplanned pregnancy
- For parents: The HSE’s ‘Making the ‘Big Talk’ many small talks’ series of booklets to help parents and children talk about relationships and sexuality is available online, and to order free of charge from healthpromotion.ie. HSE funded RSE workshops are available at npc.ie and ifpa.ie
- For teachers: Junior Cycle SPHE Resources are available to support the new 2023 SPHE specification , including the Relationship and Sexuality strand.
- For youthworkers: HSE funded training on relationship and sexuality issues is available at REAL U | Foroige and Tailored Training Courses – National Youth Council of Ireland
Sexting
The term ‘Sexting’ refers to someone sending sexually explicit pictures of themselves or others via a mobile phone, email or the web.
It’s very serious because:
- Having a sexually explicit photograph of someone under the age of 17 in your possession is against the law.
- If you distribute sexually explicit images of someone who is underage, (even if it is you) you could be charged for possession and distribution of child pornography.
To protect yourself:
- Don’t take or allow someone else to take a sexually explicit photograph of you. Think about how you would feel if your parents, classmates or neighbours saw it.
- Once you allow a photograph of yourself to be taken, you have no control over it and it could easily end up in the wrong hands and be passed on and on.
If you get a “sext” message:
- Report any sexually explicit and/or distressing pictures you receive on your phone to your parents or an adult you trust. Do not delete the message. You and your parents can report it to www.hotline.ie
Hotline.ie provides an anonymous facility for the public to report suspected illegal content encountered on the Internet, in a secure and confidential way. It is run by the Internet Service Providers Association of Ireland.