PROTECTING young people from the life-changing dangers of sharing sexual pictures is the focus of a challenge set for local schools by the police.

Hampshire Constabulary has encouraged students to submit ideas for a public campaign that can communicate and educate the importance of safer behaviour on smartphones and online devices, avoiding an act often known as ‘sexting’.

A competition for secondary schools to create concepts started in June and will finish with a finals event tomorrow as part of Hampshire Constabulary’s established Police Apprentice Initiative, part of its Safe4me education programme. And students at Robert Mays School in Odiham are among the six finalists.

The project is receiving support from influential national child safety organisations such as the NSPCC and the National Crime Agency’s Child Exploitation Online Protection Command.

Maria Carrick, Hampshire Constabulary’s school and youth engagement coordinator, said: “The concerns and consequences over these types of pictures are not always understood or reported by children. We know this from the regular work Hampshire Constabulary does with local schools and young people already.

“Education in schools and colleges is crucial for young people to make informed, positive choices to avoid themselves and their peers becoming involved in such behaviour, which can have life-changing and criminal consequences.”

A recent survey of more than 900 students in local schools conducted by Hampshire Constabulary found that 13 per cent (of 862 who answered this question) didn’t think it was against the law for young people aged under 18 to take, send or share naked selfies or images of a sexual nature, 17 per cent were unsure, more than a third (36 per cent) of students surveyed said they or someone they knew had been involved directly or affected by sexting, and when asked if they would know what to do if sexual or naked images of you or a friend were shared with others or used against you, 40 per cent said no.

PC Carrick added: “The experiences and opinions of young people are vital to give police an insight into the most effective ways to solve problems with credibility and mutual respect.”