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Barricade: A School Safeguarding Film About Sexual Harassment and Assault
In 2022, Safeline’s Prevention & Early Intervention team partnered with Director, Alice Johannessen and producer Molly Young in the production of the BFI funded short film, ‘Barricade’.
In 2022, Safeline’s Prevention & Early Intervention team collaborated with director and writer Alice Johannessen, and producer, Molly Young, to create ‘Barricade’, a BFI-funded short film that addresses sexual harassment and sexual assault in schools. Together, they developed the film to encourage a culture of zero tolerance to this form of abuse and to help young people recognise harmful sexual behaviours.
‘Barricade’ follows Aleena, a teenage girl, who experiences a traumatic incident on her school bus. As the story unfolds, she processes what happened and takes action after forming an unexpected connection with someone who understands her experience.
Harassment takes place at every school across the country and you are either part of the effort to change that or you are looking the other way.
Alice Johanessen
How Barricade Helps Schools Address Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment and harmful sexual behaviour remain significant safeguarding concerns in UK schools.
Barricade helps young people explore the impact of sexual violence, understand consent and recognise inappropriate behaviour. The film is designed to support schools, safeguarding leads, teachers and youth professionals in creating safer learning environments.
Safeline’s Prevention and Early Intervention team actively uses Barricade in secondary schools to support safeguarding education. Through guided discussions, students explore consent, healthy relationships, sexual harassment and personal safety. The film helps young people understand the impact of abuse and encourages them to seek support when needed.
Our work in schools continues to highlight the scale of the issue. Through surveys and direct engagement with young people, we have identified high levels of harmful sexual behaviour and sexual violence affecting students. These findings reinforce the need for early intervention, prevention education and whole-school safeguarding approaches.
Award Winning Film
The Scale of Sexual Abuse and Assault in Schools
National estimates suggest 1 in 6 children in England and Wales have experienced Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation. Our experience working in 67 Warwickshire schools indicates the figure is closer to 1 in 3.
In 2024, we surveyed 1,239 Year-9 students. Among respondents, 63% of girls, 19% of boys, and 70% of non-binary students disclosed that they or their friends had been affected by harmful sexual behaviours. Additionally, 37% reported experiencing sexual assault.
In a survey among sixth formers, 51% reported being sexually assaulted.