Young people in Clydebank are being encouraged to consider the impact of their online behaviour on job prospects and mental health as part of a new project running across the area.
Nil by Mouth's ‘Pause B4 U Post’ programme will see the equities charity work with a range of training and employment providers to help teenagers consider the real-life consequences of online hate speech.
Young people attending Street Leagues’ Employment Course in Clydebank Goals Centre on Great Western Road were the first to benefit from the new scheme, which is made possible by a £2,300 grant from the Scottish Children's Lottery.
Nil by Mouth Director Dave Scott admitted the course is needed more than ever with the rise in social media use and revealed young people are harming their future prospects by posting abuse.
He said: "Over the past decade I’ve worked with dozens of people who have made bad mistakes on social media, resulting in serious consequences both professionally and personally.
"We know young people spend ever-increasing amounts of time on their phones and this can sometimes lead to them dismissing sectarian, racist or homophobic language as simply being part and parcel of life rather than the crossing of legal and moral boundaries.
"This project isn’t about telling people what to do or what to think.
"It’s about helping them make informed choices and the activities we do focus on how easy it is for others, including potential employers, to form a bad impression of you based on social activity.
"Many of the young people we will be working with already have significant obstacles in their path to gaining employment so if we can help prevent them putting more up that can only be a good thing.
"We have been made very welcome in West Dunbartonshire schools over the years and we hope that this new project we let us continue that work with young people as they begin their careers.
Participants of the new course will take part in special workshops exploring their own social media use and providing a better understanding of the potential consequences for posting online abuse for those who indulge in such behaviour as well as their employers using a range of real-life case studies and testimonies.
It will also explore how being targeted for such abuse can impact on the victim’s mental health.
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