Ending Conversion Therapy: Supporting Those at Risk and Addressing the Drivers of Conversion Therapy
Only four countries in the world – Brazil, Ecuador, Germany and Malta – have banned the practice, whilst the World Health Organization (WHO) and more than 60 health professional associations from over 20 countries have discredited the practice. This includes the NHS and 12 UK psychotherapy bodies who singed a Memorandum of Understanding on Conversion Therapy in 2017 which committed to ending the practice.
This symposium provides a timely opportunity for key stakeholders to discuss government plans to ban the practice, as well as ways in which other stakeholders can help to clamp down on conversion therapies and support those at risk and vulnerable.
Program
- Discuss the government’s approach to banning conversion therapies and its current work to criminalising such activities
- Analyse how the pandemic has affected global attempts to clamp down on conversion therapies
- Identify ways to protect those at risk and vulnerable to imposed or self-referred to conversion therapies
- Examine the drivers of conversion therapy, including religious reasons, and discuss how they can be addressed
- Compare international responses to conversion therapies and whether they can be applied to the UK
- Analyse the existing legislative framework and how that can be utilised to clamp down on practices that used as part of conversion therapies
- Discuss the role of the police and health authorities in protecting those at risk of being subjected to conversion therapies
Who Should Attend?
- Police Forces
- Public Protection Units
- Adult’s and Children’s Social Care Services
- Child Protection Units
- Safeguarding Adult Teams
- Local Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adult Boards
- Community Safety and Outreach Teams
- Crisis Response Teams
- Family Liaison Teams
- Victim Support Teams
- CAMHS Practitioners
- Commissioning Managers
- School Nurses and Health Visitors
- Directors of Children’s Services
- Families Services Officers
- Schools and Children’s Trusts
- Counselling Services
- Early Years Practitioners
- Health Service Professionals
- General Practitioners
- Child and Educational Psychologists
- Family Planning Specialists
- Sexual Health Strategy Co-ordinators
- Looked After/Children in Care Teams
- Local, Regional and National Health Services
- Health Treatment/Advisory Services
- Community Cohesion and Development Organisations
- Local Education Welfare Authorities and
- Schools
- Local Criminal Justice Boards
- Local Family Justice Councils
- Local Child Abuse Investigation Teams
- Social Workers and Social Services Officers
- Mental Health Teams
- Multi-Agency Adult Protection Management Committees
- Home Office, UKBA and Central Government Agencies
- Legal Professionals, Judges and Magistrates
- Faith Groups
- Third Sector Practitioners
- Academics and Researchers