Get Help Online Resource
Get Help Online Resource
A free anonymous self-help resource for people worried about their online behaviour with regard to accessing indecent images of children.
Type of intervention
Online
Target groups, level of prevention and subgroups
- (Potential) Offenders | Tertiary prevention | Young Adults (18-20 years), Adults (21+ years) | Male and female | Online | Internet-related only | English
Target population
Adult men and women who have viewed indecent images of children online and who want to stop. They can access the materials regardless of whether or not they have been arrested, as the website asks for no contact details, thus enabling the user to remain anonymous. Information is also available for family or friends and professionals
Delivery organisation
Child protection charity The Lucy Faithfull Foundation (UK). The website and its content were originally created as a Daphne (EU) programme, coordinated by Cork University (in Ireland) with information and support from non-governmental organisations and statutory agencies in the UK, Ireland, Spain, Poland and Italy.
Mode and context of delivery
Users access resources and complete ‘self-exploration’ exercises on the website. They do not routinely have any interaction via the website with anybody from LFF or other organisations. However, those who access the Stop it Now! UK and Ireland website may be recommended to visit the Get Help website and can be ‘accompanied’ on their self-exploration by a helpline operator.
Level/nature of staff expertise required
Setting up and maintaining the Get Help website requires considerable IT expertise. The website content involved input from professionals and academics with substantial knowledge and experience of offenders and offending; the assessment of their needs and risk and of delivery and evaluation of relevant intervention programmes.
Intensity/extent of engagement with target group(s)
The user engages with the website and its content as much as they need or want to. Some callers to the Stop it Now! UK and Ireland Helpline are directed to the website as a resource they may find useful. They can report on their progress to a helpline operator on a periodic basis. The online nature of the existing Get Help materials means that they can be accessed from anywhere in the world.
Description of intervention
Get Help provides free, anonymous self-help resources for people who are worried about downloading and using indecent images of children.
The aims of Get Help are:
- To provide people with information relating to illegal images on the Internet and the law
- To help people to identify and explore their problematic internet use
- To help people learn techniques to cope with difficult emotions and thoughts and to change their problematic use of the Internet
The website is split into three main sections;
- Users who are worried about their own online behaviour
- Users who are worried about another persons online behaviour
- Professional users
For users who are worried about their own online behaviour there are four sections, get the facts, why change, self-awareness and self-help each briefly described below.
Get the facts –
- What the law (UK) says about sexual abuse images
- The UK criminal justice system: from arrest to possible imprisonment
- Potential consequences to you and your family
Why change? -
- Recognise and accept you have a problem.
- Recognise that viewing inappropriate material online is harmful both to your own life and the lives of others.
- Develop a plan for change
Self-awareness -
- Internet Dependency Checklist
- Online Cognition Scale
- Internet and Values
- Illegal Activities Matrix
Self-help -
- Understanding the behaviour
- Your wellbeing and self-care
- Moving forward
Useful resources –
- Books
- Websites
- Organisations
- Helplines
For users who are worried about another persons online behaviour, the following sections are available;
- What are sexual images of children?
- Who accesses sexual images of children?
- How do people access sexual images of children?
- Why do people access sexual images of children?
- Why don’t they stop?
- What are the risks?
- Why didn’t I know?
- What are the consequences?
- What can I do?
- Partner Testimonies
There is also a Family and Friends Forum which provides a discussion area.
For professionals the website covers the following areas;
- Illegal online sexual behaviour
- Working with partners
- Criminal Justice process
- Professionals’ self-care
- Research articles and books
Evaluation
https://www.stopitnow.org.uk/our-impact/helpline-evaluation/
References
https://www.stopitnow.org.uk/our-impact/helpline-evaluation/
Contact details
The Lucy Faithfull Foundation
Telephone: 01372 847 160
Email: contact@lucyfaithfull.org.uk
Website:https://www.lucyfaithfull.org.uk/
INFORMATION CORRECT AT JANUARY 2021
RATING: Pioneering