Press Releases17 Sep 10

Mothers' Union 'Bye Buy Childhood' Report launched

MU Report: Exploiting children for profit is wrong

Research just published shows that 80% of UK parents believe media and marketing with sexualized content is too easily accessed by children, and makes them sexually aware too young. Research carried out amongst 1,000 parents by ComRes, for Mothers’ Union, showed that 71% of parents believe that the media encourages children to act older than they really want to and that 67% of parents believe that inappropriate content is shown on TV before the 9pm watershed.

Mothers’ Union’s report, Bye Buy Childhood: A report into the commercialisation of childhood, reveals new research into parents’ experiences of the pressures that commercialisation brings to bear on family life, and draws on existing research to demonstrate the negative effects that a consumer-culture has on children’s wellbeing.

Speaking at the recent campaign launch Rosemary Kempsell, Worldwide President of Mothers’ Union said, 'Mothers’ Union is concerned at the increasing levels of marketing aimed at children. Brands deliberately encourage a culture of “pester power” or use manipulative techniques such as recruiting young people as conduits for peer-to-peer marketing. This is having a far-reaching effect on children’s values, and their family life. Marketers play on the need that children have to fit in with their friends, to belong. We believe exploiting children for profit is wrong.' Through Bye Buy Childhood Mothers’ Union is calling for change, asking marketing, media and retailers to make a difference to childhood by:

• Not taking advantage of children’s natural inexperience to sell to them
• Not marketing or selling goods of a sexualised nature to children under 16
• Ensuring that children under 16 are not exposed to the marketing and display of sexualised products.

Bye Buy Childhood will tackle the commercialisation of children at every level – from raising awareness to providing support and advice to parents.

'We want to encourage a cultural shift, with new codes of practice put in place so that childhood is both a respected as well as a creative time rather than predominantly a marketing opportunity.' said Fleur Dorrell, Head of Faith & Policy at Mothers’ Union. 'Values of good parenting, of belonging and of choosing what brings happiness should not be sold to us as a product or a purchase.'

Bye Buy Childhood is a campaign initiated by Mothers’ Union in response to concern by the membership, and awareness of evidence-based research which demonstrates clearly that the commercialisation of childhood has an adverse effect in all areas of a child’s life: physical health, mental health and emotional wellbeing, the values they develop, their education development and their relationships with family and their peers.

Mothers’ Union is responding to the findings expressed in its Report by asking for change from industry, developing a range of resources for families to use and by providing practical support.

The child related 'purse' in the UK is huge, with an annual spend of £99 billion by children or by people spending on children. £350 million is spent by the advertising industry annually persuading children to consume.

Full details of the research report, together with campaign resources, can be found at www.byebuychildhood.org

ENDS

Media Enquiries:  Ruth Mercer  All Ireland President
Mothers’ Union 
Tel: 028  3756 8554
Email: [email protected]

Susan Cathcart  All Ireland Marketing
Mothers’ Union
Tel:  028  66388737
Email: [email protected]
www.themothersunion.org
www.byebuychildhood.org