Tricky Friends
Tricky Friends is a new animation which helps children understand how some friendships can be unhealthy or dangerous, and how to spot the signs. It touches on issues such as bullying, child criminal exploitation, online safety and peer pressure.
The animation is intended to help those working with children engage in difficult conversations by raising the issues in a relatable manner. Intended for use with 9-13 year olds, additional resources have been developed to help schools use Tricky Friends as part of their Relationships curriculum, and for other settings such as youth groups. Scroll down to access an advice sheet and a RSHE curriculum plan. For more information please contact nscb@norfolk.gov.uk
The issues that the animation may help raise are:
- Peer Pressure
- Bullying
- County Lines
- Self-awareness
- Exploitative relationships
- Criminal behaviour
- Trusted adults in the community
- Online safety
Children and young people may face these issues on a daily basis, in their home, school or other settings. As a trusted adults, being able to have conversations with young people to help them stay safe is vital.
Andy Coller, Detective Superintendent for Safeguarding at Norfolk Police, said “Tricky Friends is a brilliant animation to help youth workers, schools and others have conversations with children and young people about criminal exploitation, online safety and peer pressure. These are prevalent issues for young people in Norfolk, and by creating safe spaces for them to raise issues, ask questions and discuss the challenges safely, we hope that more young people will understand how they can stay safe and help their friends to as well.”
Further Resources
Below are additional resources designed to help you explore the issues raised in Tricky Friends:
Tricky Friends Resource Sheet: Ideas and tips to help you have conversations with children and young people
Tricky Friends KS2 RSHE curriculum: a six-week RSHE curriculum designed for schools and other settings for KS2 (9-11 year olds)
Tricky Friends KS3 RSHE curriculum: a six-week RSHE curriculum for schools and other settings for KS3 (12-13 year olds)
Further resources are also available on the following pages: