Netflix hit Adolescence should be ‘wake-up call’ for parents

There are many lessons which can be learned from a popular Netflix series, a Guernsey Police officer said.

Digital safety development officer Special Constable Laura Simpson said the programme Adolescence shone a light on how the so-called manosphere – male rage and misogynistic influences online – could affect boys and young men’s mental health.

The show, starring Stephen Graham, follows the family of a 13-year-old schoolboy who is arrested for killing a female classmate, and explores the impact of social media and misogynist influencers on some boys.

Con Simpson said the series should act as a “wake-up call” to parents, carers and professionals who worked with children.

Con Simpson added people should not “bury their heads in the sand” when it came to the online lives of children and what influenced them.

She said: “I think my key takeaway from the series was a moment in the last episode when the parents looked at each other and asked: ‘Should we have done more?’

“That acknowledgement that they were not involved enough in aspects of their son’s life which had ultimately led to tragedy should be a wake-up call to everyone who is a parent, carer or professional who works with kids of any age.”

She said her advice to parents was to talk to their children about their online lives, be active users of apps and games played by them and use parental controls on the internet.

She also said parents and children should share videos and content with each other they think is interesting, along with sharing information and ideas with other key people in a child’s life, including teachers and relatives.