About Lynnette Smith
MD & Founder
Lynnette Smith is the MD and Founder of BigTalk Education, she is a former Chair of the National Children’s Bureau’s Sex Education Forum Advisory Group.
Lynnette has a background in Youth & Community Work; she is also a qualified Teacher, Trainer and Specialist Relationship & Sex Education Trainer having worked in the field of SRE since the early ’90s. She has worked for several Authorities in the Yorkshire and Humber Region before setting up BigTalk Education in 2005.
Having worked in Relationship & Sex Education (RSE) since the 90s, BigTalk Education founder Lynnette is frequently approached to consult in many fields within the private and public sector. These include;
Government
The Government’s Women & Equalities Committee (a cross-party select committee) invited Lynnette Smith to Westminster to contribute to a discussion about sexual harassment and assaults in schools. The results of this enquiry were pivotal in RSE becoming statuary as of September 2020.
BigTalk Education were invited to attend the consultation meeting held by the Department for Education (along with partners such as Public Health England, Barnardos, Brook, National Children’s Bureau, the NSPCC, the National Association of Head Teachers and the Family Planning Association) to contribute to the age appropriate recommendations that will be published by the DoE in relation to the new statutory RSE guidelines.
Lynnette was the Chair of the Sex Education Forum‘s advisory board from 2018 to 2020, during which time RSE became statutory.
Media
Lynnette Smith regularly features on both national and local radio to discuss issues around RSE, especially contemporary issues such as sexting, children viewing pornography, grooming and the need to start Relationship & Sex Education at a young age.
In addition to her regular radio work, Lynnette has also appeared on various TV shows, including BBC Breakfast (BBC1), Porn: What’s the Harm? (BBC3) and Big Questions (BBC1).
Lynnette Smith and the team at BigTalk Education also regularly provide consultation for researchers in programme development.
Academic
Over several years, Lynnette Smith was involved in the Fatherhood Project undertaken by University of Leeds. This was an academic research study all about young fathers. The element which Lynnette was involved with, produced evidence that demonstrated that a lack of quality RSE for boys and young men, was a contributing factor in them becoming young fathers.
Lynnette Smith has previously held lecturing positions at both Lincoln & Hull universities on a part time basis.
BigTalk Education has worked closely with the University of Warwick, Lynnette has lectured on RSE both to undergraduate education and PGCE students. This includes additional smaller group workshops delivered by the BigTalk team.
BigTalk Education has been interviewed and visited by Reasearchers from all over the globe, including Sweden, New Zealand and a delegation of Japanese academics from Kyoto University who are undertaking a research project addressing international RSE programmes.
Specialist Work with Vulnerable Groups
As part of a partner town initiative Lynnette was asked to visit St Georges in Romania to provide staff training educating a multidisciplinary team who were tasked with delivering RSE in schools. Whilst there Lynnette Smith also worked directly with teenagers in Orphanages which culminated in the establishment of an ongoing peer education programme to benefit children and young people into the future.
Following concerns regarding the frequent withdrawal of Gypsy Roma Traveller (GRT) children from RSE lessons, Lynnette has worked in conjunction with the Doncaster Gypsy Traveller Voice Project, to create bespoke resources suitable for GRT children and young people.
The roll out of these Resources and accompanying Training is now available from BigTalk Education.
The Big Talk Education Team
The Team (in different forms) has been delivering RSE since 1996 and now consists of 10 fully trained Staff who deliver the many aspects of RSE. All our Staff have advanced DBS clearance, are covered by full insurance and have all received appropriate Health and Safety training. Big Talk Education is CHAS registered; we are affiliated to the Sex Education Forum. To find out about the rest of the team see our team page.
Operation Hydrant is the police initiative set up in 2014 to coordinate investigations into allegations of non-recent child sexual abuse. This factsheet from Operation Hydrant gives some basic information on reporting historic abuse to the police and what is involved.
To report non-recent child abuse to the Police
Operation Hydrant is the police initiative set up in 2014 to coordinate investigations into allegations of non-recent child sexual abuse. This factsheet from Operation Hydrant gives some basic information on reporting historic abuse to the police and what is involved.
To report non-recent child abuse to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
The Truth Project was set up for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse to share their experiences in a supportive and confidential setting. It’s part of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) which was set up in 2015 to investigate organisations and institutions that have failed to protect children from sexual abuse.
HAVOCA – Help for Adult Victims Of Child Abuse
National Association for People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC)
One in Four
Rape Crisis
Samaritans
Survivors UK
Victim Support
Rehab for Addiction
Rehab for Addiction aids individuals affected by substance misuse and their loved ones, providing a wide array of services to guide you towards the most effective treatments. They support with alcohol rehab, drug rehab, detox services, intervention, aftercare, and outpatient counseling, all facilitated by various reputable UK Private Addiction Rehab or NHS/Council-Funded providers.
