Crawley MP supports latest RSPCA initiative held at House of Commons

Mr Smith met with the RSPCA’s chief executive Chris Sherwood to hear about their Generation Kind initiative which helps teach compassion to new generations and the organisation’s work to protect animals in Crawley.

Research by the RSPCA revealed that nearly a quarter of school children aged 10-18 have witnessed animal cruelty and neglect on social media. Generation Kind, the charity’s biggest ever education and prevention programme, was developed to help address this.

Mr Smith said: “I’m proud to support the RSPCA and the work that they do to protect animal welfare in Crawley. It was fantastic to hear about their work and to thank them on behalf of the animal lovers in our town for all that they do. However, I’m saddened that young children are being exposed to horrific incidents of animal suffering online, in ways previous generations have simply not experienced.

“We all have a duty to raise the next generation to be kind and compassionate to animals and I’ll continue to work closely with the RSPCA to help improve standards of animal welfare in Crawley and across the UK.”

Mr Sherwood, said: “It’s great that Henry Smith MP attended our drop-in event to find out how we help animals in his constituency. Our frontline officers see some really horrific suffering and our research revealed that children as young as 10 have seen cruelty and attacks in social media videos and posts which is worrying.

“We are working hard to create a generation of children who treat animals with kindness, compassion and respect through Generation Kind – a series of projects working with youngsters at risk of offending, animal care sessions for children in care and also talks and competitions for primary and secondary school children designed to make them think about animal welfare.”

Generation Kind was launched in October 2018. In the first year, more than 1,000 primary schools took part in Compassionate Class activitie. Using video and interactive content, pupils aged seven to 11 take part in various activities such as discussions, debates and creative assignments.

Paws for Change, a project that has been running for some years on a small scale, has now expanded to six centres. The scheme matches young people suffering from low self-esteem, or having problems with impulse control, with a rescue dog chosen specifically for them.