Teenagers running away from home because of abusive situations are being offered help.
The Faith Marshall-Harris Sandy Lane Charitable Trust Children’s Helpline is partnering with Action For Justice to provide mentorship for these adolescents.
Marshall-Harris, a former Juvenile Court magistrate who founded a hotline in 2019 to assist children who were in distress, said the new venture was a way of reaching out to teenagers, a group which she was extremely concerned about.
“I have considered for some time that for them the Helpline must go a step further,” she told the Sunday Sun. “The idea behind the programme we are launching with Action For Justice is to respond to the needs of a group which is at risk. I am very worried about the teenagers in this country, the young persons who are not young children, so generally there is not much focus on them and their mental health.
“We have not dealt with this age group well. On the Helpline we are finding that many of them are in abusive situations which result in conflict with parents, siblings and other adult relatives. I have a lot of sympathy for them and this started from the time I was on the bench in the Juvenile Court. . . ” (MB)
