The Resilience Challenge

The Resilience Challenge offers churches the possibility to show the film ‘Resilience’ free of charge to parents, health and social workers, educators, police and local government representatives in their community and initiate discussions with those present on the effect of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and what, as a community, can be done to prevent and reduce them. See more at https://resiliencechallenge.org.uk.

Cut-off date for applications is 31 January 2020. Events must be held in 2020

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About ACEs and Resilience

Does your church want to help parents, children, educators, health service, police, social services, etc., in your community?

What information, if it were flowing through the people of your community, would start them on a journey together toward really strong, healthy living?

Could your church be instrumental in raising awareness in your community of the effect of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and become trauma-informed?

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are stressful events occurring in childhood including:

domestic violence
parental abandonment through separation or divorce
a parent with a mental health condition
being the victim of abuse (physical, sexual and/or emotional)
being the victim of neglect (physical and emotional)
a member of the household being in prison
growing up in a household in which there are adults experiencing alcohol and drug use problems.

ACEs have been found to have lifelong impacts on health and behaviour and they are relevant to all sectors and involve all of us in society. You can help reduce ACEs by encouraging wider awareness and understanding about ACEs and their impact on health and behaviour, supporting parents and families and building resilience in children and wider communities. Therefore becoming a trauma-aware community.

The effect of ACEs

People affected by several ACEs have much higher risk of poor health, educational failure, imprisonment, addiction, etc. For example, a recent study [1] of men in prison in Wales found that nearly half of prisoners (46%) reported they had experienced four or more ACEs. This compares to just over 1 in 10 (12%) in the wider population. It also found that prisoners with multiple ACEs (four or more) were four times more likely to have spent time in a young offender institution than those with no ACEs.

In an English National ACE study [2] nearly half (47%) of individuals experienced at least one ACE with 9% of the population having 4+ ACEs. The case for help is overwhelming when reviewing the statistics:

People exposed to 4+ ACEs die 20 years earlier than those with no ACEs
Four or more ACEs significantly increase the odds of a person:
Developing cancer (by nearly two times)
Being a current smoker (just over two times)
Having sexually transmitted infections (by two and a half times)
Using illicit drugs (by nearly five times increased risk)
Being addicted to alcohol (over seven times increased risk)
Attempting suicide (over 12 times increased risk)

Prevention and reduction

Prevention starts with awareness, especially by parents, schools, doctors, social workers, police, local government, etc. Organisations can develop ‘trauma-informed practices’ to mitigate the effects.
Preventing ACEs in future generations [3] could reduce levels of:

Early sex by 22%
Unintended teen pregnancy by 38%
Smoking (current) by 16%
Binge drinking (current) by 15%
Cannabis use (lifetime) by 18%
Heroin/crack use (lifetime) by 59%
Violence victimisation (past year) by 51%
Incarceration (lifetime) by 53%
Poor diet (current) by 14%
Mood disorders by 22.9%
Anxiety disorders by 31%
Behavioural disorders by 41%
Psychosis by 33%
Mental health diagnoses by 29%

The Resilience Challenge

The Resilience Challenge offers churches in 100 different communities in the UK, the possibility to show the film ‘Resilience’ free of charge to parents, health and social workers, educators, police and local government representatives in their community and initiate discussions with those present on the effect of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and what, as a community, can be done to prevent and reduce them.

James Redford, son of Robert Redford and director of ‘Resilience’, says about the impact of such screenings, "The most interesting thing to me, as time went on, was the word of mouth [awareness of the film] in communities and grassroots organizations that were looking at this issue in their own communities. They saw it as a chance to use the film as a primer about aces and toxic stress. All across the USA, it just sort of bubbled up. We've have literally had hundreds of screenings, across 50 states and some of them multiple times... Additionally it's gone international."

in 2017, in Scotland, nearly 2500 people attended 28 screenings of ‘Resilience’, followed by Q+A in communities across the country. People were drawn predominantly by a wish to better understand toxic stress, to gain practical tips on how to help, or to reflect on ways in which trauma has impacted on their personal life. A huge interest in ACEs now exists amongst the Scottish public, transcending professions, sectors and agencies.

Do you want to see this in your community? Could your church take up the Challenge?

More details here: https://resiliencechallenge.org.uk

References:
[1] https://phw.nhs.wales/news1/news/more-than-eight-in-ten-men-in-prison-suffered-childhood-adversity/
[2] https://www.liverpoolcamhs.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Liverpool-ACE-briefing-SlideSet-.pdf
[3] https://www.liverpoolcamhs.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Liverpool-ACE-briefing-SlideSet-.pdf