A girl student spoke to a facilitator of the Personal Safety Education (PSE) programme during an individual session which is conducted after the completion of the lesson plan-based sessions. Initially, the child was skeptical about sharing the unsafe situation she had faced. She wasn’t sure if Arpan would provide enough help. She thought that Arpan was one of those organisations who would just come to the school, conduct sessions and then leave without initiating any meaningful change in their lives. After battling her initial hesitation, she shared with the facilitator that her uncle used to touch her inappropriately which made the child extremely uncomfortable. The facilitator validated her feelings and reiterated that she has the right to refuse any touch that makes her uncomfortable. This gave the girl the confidence to share the incident with her mother. The girl’s mother was happy that the PSE programme helped her child reach out to a helpful adult and seek help. The girl also communicated that she was thankful that Arpan facilitators had come to her school and taught them about Personal Safety.
Arpan’s Personal Safety Education Programme builds confidence to seek help.