ESSEX Sexual Health Service, delivered by Provide Community and commissioned by Essex County Council, is marking Sexual Health Week 2025 next week (Monday 15 to Sunday21 September), with a focus on digital wellbeing, consent, and supporting young people in an increasingly online world.

This year’s national theme, “Chronically Online“, explores how the internet, and digital culture, has reshaped how young people view sex, relationships, and identity. From dating apps and social media pressures to misinformation and deepfakes, online life has blurred the lines between fact and fiction, privacy and exposure.

As part of the campaign, Essex Sexual Health Service will be visiting colleges and universities across Essex throughout the week to open up conversations with students around how real-life intimate relationships may differ from the pornographic content they see online. The aim is to promote realistic expectations, challenge harmful myths, and provide a safe space for questions around sex, safety and consent.

Essex Sexual Health Service is encouraging parents, carers, and professionals to join two free online sessions designed to help adults understand and support young people facing these challenges.

Free virtual awareness sessions – open to Essex residents and professionals working with young people

• Talking Safety: Empowering Young People
  Wednesday 17 September 2025 – 6:30pm to7:30pm
  – For parents, carers, and anyone working with young people in Essex
  – Delivered by Essex Sexual Health Service in partnership with Risk in the Community
  – Register by clicking here 

• Know the Online Risks (with The Two Johns)
  Thursday 18 September 2025 – 8pm to 9:30pm
  – For all parents, carers and professionals supporting young people across Essex 
  – Register by clicking here 

Young people today are navigating a digital world that moves fast and isn’t always safe. This year’s campaign is a call to action for adults to:

• Recognise how online content can influence attitudes around sex and consent.
• Understand the digital risks facing young people, including pressure, shame, or exposure.
• Empower teens and young adults to make informed, confident choices about relationships and safety, both online and off.

By combining online education sessions with in-person outreach in local colleges and universities, Essex Sexual Health Service is helping young people and the adults around them to spot digital red flags, challenge unrealistic expectations, and build healthier relationships in the real world.

This approach is backed by findings from Essex County Council’s 2025 RSHE (Relationships, Sex and Health Education) survey, which showed that while most young people have access to the internet via mobile phones, many hesitate to seek help when something goes wrong online. Concerns like embarrassment, fear of losing internet access, or believing that adults “won’t understand” remain key barriers.

Sophie Milner, Education and Outreach Manager at Essex Sexual Health Service, said “We strongly encourage parents and carers to attend these sessions. They’re designed to help adults open up those conversations and provide the kind of support young people actually feel safe turning to, without fear or judgement.”

Essex Sexual Health Service provides free, confidential support for people of all ages. Whether you’re looking for STI testing, contraception advice, or support as a parent or carer, our team is here to help.

Find local clinics, resources, and self-testing options at: www.essexsexualhealthservice.org.uk