Netflix’s hit show Adolescence has got everyone talking. The crime drama follows the story of a 13-year-old boy accused of murdering a female student after being exposed to misogynistic material online. The show shines a light on the disturbing influence of misogynistic male influences on young men and has left many parents worried for their children.

TLC: Talk, Listen, Change is a national relationships charity based in Trafford, that specialises in tackling gender-based violence from adults and children. TLC, in partnership with the Salford Foundation, designed and piloted STEPS a new gender-based violence education and prevention curriculum for teenage boys across Greater Manchester which has seen fantastic results. Bonnie Webster from TLC shares her experience of delivering STEPS.

In my five years at TLC, I’ve mainly worked with young people displaying harmful behaviours towards others and have seen a worrying rise in negative attitudes toward women and girls, even among boys as young as 9.

Ofsted’s ground-breaking review on sexual abuse in schools exposed the widespread scale of the issue. Nearly 90% of girls and 50% of boys received explicit images they didn’t want; sexist name-calling was routine, and many children felt PHSE lessons were ‘too little too late’.[1] This urgent need for early intervention was why I was keen to collaborate with the Salford Foundation on a pilot project tackling misogyny and gender-based violence in schools.

STEPS is an educational preventative project for boys aged 9 to 13, designed to tackle gender-based violence through promoting critical thinking, self-reflection and empathy. Since March 2024, we have worked with 645 boys in primary and secondary schools across Greater Manchester. The 6-9 week sessions included universal sessions for all boys and targeted sessions for those who displayed entrenched misogynistic views and engaged in harmful behaviours, such as using degrading language towards women or struggling to realise why these attitudes are problematic.

Sessions addressed issues around misogyny, pornography, consent, and healthy relationships and we encouraged open discussions around masculinity and attitudes towards women without fear of reprimand. Young boys often struggle with empathy and personal responsibility, so we aimed to empower them to support women and girls and challenge misogyny among their peers and online.

A moment that stuck out to me came during a discussion on rejection. In Adolescence, we see Jamie struggle with feelings of rejection. Similarly, in a scenario-based exercise, most boys initially saw anger and insults as valid responses to a scenario where a girl politely rejects a boy. However, when asked to imagine themselves in the girl’s position, many were able to recognise their feelings of entitlement and anger. By listening without judgement, gently challenging harmful views and offering positive alternatives, many of the boys were able to recognise why these responses were harmful and were able to apply consent into a wider context.

“I think it’s important to learn about misogyny and sexism as we need to learn about respect. Some boys can be proper rough with girls and don’t know how to respect them. This project has helped me understand kindness and respect to girls and boys.”– Year 5.

By the end of the programme, we saw a significant development in pupils critical thinking skills. Most boys could identify sexist comments on social media, understand their harm, and articulate why gender-based violence is a serious issue. Their vocabulary and awareness around these topics grew significantly and many even expressed feeling more confident calling out sexism online or among friends.

“We don’t get education about this stuff or domestic violence and violence towards girls. We should know about this from being young so that we don’t do it in the future.”– Year 8.

If you are interested in finding out more about this project, please email [email protected]. We’d be happy to share our findings with you and explore ways to expand this initiative to more schools across Greater Manchester.

[1] Ofsted, Review of sexual abuse in schools and colleges – GOV.UK, June 2021