The Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2022 came into force on Monday 27 February 2023.

Previously, people could enter a marriage or civil partnership at age 18, or 16 to 17 with parental or judicial consent.  The Act has raised the minimum marriage and civil partnership age to 18, removing all consent requirements.

The Act extends previous forced marriage legislation, so it is now an offence to carry out any conduct causing a child to marry before their eighteenth birthday, even if violence, threats or another form of coercion aren’t used.

Marriage and forced marriage are taught as part RSHE.
The DfE are asking schools to ensure that teaching now covers these points. Further forced marriage guidance is available here.

Young Minds have recently released a new guide for professionals and volunteers who work with young people in the community. It focuses on helping young people to build positive mental health and includes downloadable worksheets and instructions on how to use these activities in 1:1 and group settings. They hope you like it.
Check out the new resource.

KMEWO sends Her deepest, sincerest heartfelt sympathies to all families, relatives, friends and acquaintances victims of the Turkish, Syrian Earthquake. The affected Middle Eastern communities include Turkish, Kurdish, Arabs, and many Afghans refugee families in the area.

The death toll has risen to more than 30.000 (source: Guardian Newspaper) and tragically continues to rise, as the window for rescue narrows. Tens of thousands of people have lost their homes. The devastation will impact them for many years to come.

The conflict areas of Syria are occupied by thousands people living in the open air, under the threat from the harsh and horrific conditions, and the death toll is likely to rise significantly (source World Health Organisation (WHO)). We call upon the UK government to make all efforts so that humanitarian aid can get through to all affected regions, including these conflict zones, where the affected communities are less likely to receive aid and support due to years of political and armed conflicts.

In the UK , KMEWO stays concerned about the wellbeing of diaspora communities whose families and loved ones are in the middle of this crisis. We would like to extend our hand of support to all Syrian, Kurdish, Turkish, Afghan and other organisations leading on the effort to help the communities dealing with the severe impact on their wellbeing and mental health.  KMEWO offers counselling in several Middle Eastern languages, including Kurdish, Farsi, Arabic and English, and our doors will be open for anyone affected by this crisis. Please contact us at info@kmewo.com  and 020 7263 1027 if we can help in any possible way.

KMEWO Team

This link gives information about the new legislation - the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.