We take seriously the health, safety and wellbeing of our young men and it is our wish to create gentle men who can make good decisions whilst at school and beyond.

Throughout Term’s 2 & 3, students from Years 8, 9 & 10 will participate in a workshop on the issue of consent. This workshop will be led by an external provider, Elephant Ed, who present to a range of schools, including Government, Independent and Catholic schools.

The topics covered in the workshop include:

• Legalities, including age of consent and free agreement.
• Key elements requirements for valid consent, including verbal and nonverbal communication.
• Critical analysis of consent in the media.
• The importance of respecting boundaries.
• Avenues to seek help if required.

After each workshop, students complete a feedback survey. Below is a summary of the feedback from Year 10 students (201 students), who completed the workshop in Term 2, based on the following statements:

• Students gave the workshop the thumbs up – 99%
• Students want Elephant Ed to return to deliver more workshops – 95%
• Students feel more informed on this topic after the workshop – 97%
• Students feel there is someone they can talk to about this topic – 95%

At Whitefriars, we believe in the inherent dignity of all people, who are made in God’s image and likeness. We hope through these educational programs, our boys will come away with a deeper understanding of their responsibilities in respecting the value of each person.

‘Consent’ Parent Webinar

At Whitefriars, we also believe in strong parent partnerships where we support parents with the knowledge to have important conversations with their sons at home. To this end, Whitefriars College hosted a parent webinar presented by Elephant Ed on the issue of ‘Consent’.

This webinar included the following key discussion points:

• Statistics and prevalence of sexual assault.
• Legalities surrounding consent.
• Avenues to seek help.
• Strategies to start the conversation at home.

The recent Government campaign focussing on the issue of consent asks the challenging question: ‘If we don’t know the answers, how do our kids?’ It is vital that the adults in the lives of our young people have an understanding of issues such as this so that we can help guide young people to make informed decisions based on respect and dignity.

Mr Mick Lafferty

Deputy Principal – Students