Support should reach the child – a new digital pathway to support is now launched on Skolon and StudyBee

Children who experience sexual violence often carry a lot of guilt and shame, and few tell anyone about what has happened. Even for those who dare to seek support, it can be difficult to know where to turn. Now a new digital support pathway is being launched on school platforms like Skolon and StudyBee, with the goal of bringing support to children instead of the other way around.

Behind the initiative is the Support Cluster Against Sexual Violence, a collaboration between 1000 Möjligheter, ChildX, MÄN, Novahuset, Storasyster, Tjejzonen, Childhood, and Stenbecks Stiftelse. Through a shared digital chat button that can be placed on other organizations’ websites and platforms, children and young people, parents, and other important adults can more easily find the right support. The ambition is to make support accessible directly in more of the digital environments where children and young people already are.

– We need to start reversing the traditional way of thinking about support. Today, children and young people are expected to understand on their own that they need help, know what to search for, and find the right organization. We want to change the basic conditions. Children shouldn’t have to search for help; support must be where children already are , says Sara Hugosson, Head of Development and Innovation at ChildX.

Support that reaches millions through schools

With the launch on Skolon, one of Sweden’s largest digital education platforms today, the chat button will be available as a selectable feature to activate free of charge for all of the platform’s school authorities.

– When we received the question from the support cluster about being part of making the initiative a reality, the answer was obvious. Significantly lowering the barriers to seeking help can be the difference that helps children and young people find the right support at the right time, says Oliver Lindhe-Lundgren, CEO of Skolon.

With StudyBee, part of Unikum, support is now accessible in a prominent place in the app that is already part of everyday life for many children and young people. Together, StudyBee and Unikum reach users in over 100 municipalities and independent school chains.

– By making support accessible directly in the school’s digital environments, we can lower the barriers to help, says Johan Henricson, Managing Director at StudyBee.

An accessible support system

The solution functions as a hub that makes it easier to find the right support at the right time. In an initial phase, the chat button is connected to MÄN’s and Novahuset’s support chats. After the new year, more and more organizations will be able to connect, with the goal of eventually being able to offer comprehensive support directly in the digital environments where children and young people, their parents, and the adults around them already are.

– During the time we have been developing this technical solution, we have asked children and young people what they think, and the feedback has been very positive. This could be the difference between daring to seek help and continuing to carry everything alone. Therese Ekengren, MÄN

The starting point is simple: Children shouldn’t have to search for help – help should be where children already are. Instead of children, young people, and adults having to navigate between organizations and support pathways themselves, the ambition is to create a shared digital entry point that can exist directly in their everyday lives.

– Our vision is bigger than individual collaborations. We want to help build a new infrastructure for support. The more platforms and digital environments that connect, the more children and young people will have close access to the support they need , concludes Moa Lindh at Novahuset.

The digital support pathway is now being launched in connection with the start of the fall semester and has already helped several children and young people find their way to support.

About the Support Cluster Against Sexual Violence: The Support Cluster Against Sexual Violence is a collaboration between 1000 Möjligheter, ChildX, MÄN, Novahuset, Storasyster, and Tjejzonen. The cluster works together to create the support system of the future, more accessible support, and to make the pathway to support easier for children and young people, parents, and other important adults. The Support Cluster Against Sexual Violence was started on the initiative of Stenbecks Stiftelse, World Childhood Foundation, and ChildX in 2022, with the aim of strengthening individual support lines and collaboration between them.

Please get in touch if you would like to learn more, receive additional materials, or arrange an interview with Sara Hugosson.