Durham Escorts

LAST week Diane Abbott MP tweeted about the “sex worker” training that Durham University was offering its students. Her detractors were soon out in hordes insisting that “sex work” just needs to be made safe and she is simply not progressive enough to understand.

The Universites are being positive in providing saftey advice. No one denies that selling sexual services can be dangerous. The attitude of sweeping it under the carpet, and criminilising those involved (buying or selling) make the work even more dangerous.  Rather tham implementing the Noridic Model as proposed by Anna Fisher of Nordic Model Now! (nordicmodelnow.org).

A total decriminilisation is called for. Peer reviewed research in sex work comes out positively on the benefits of decriminilisation as implemented in New Zealand and New South Wales. The Nordic Model Now have a few people who have worked in the sex industry who fight for the end of the sex industry. This is opposed to the hundreds of thousands working in it now.

Durham, Newcastle and Manchester are the only Russell Group universities that have policies in place to support their students who work in the sex industry. There is an estimate that there are 214,200 student sex workers. That does sound high to me, but not all those student sex workers would be student escorts.

It is a pity that other Universities do not provide advice to those who are sex workers. Advice on STIs, the law, and organisations they can turn to for help.

Outside the Russell Group unis, Leicester University released the Student Sex Work Toolkit. The safety resource includes details for staff on how to communicate with students about their sex work and signposting of further sources of information. They also outline a guide on the legalities of sex work and tips for students to keep themselves safe.

None of this is encouragement to students to work as escorts, but rather to help those who already work in the sex industry to be safe.

Durham university escorts say they have made hundreds of pounds working as sex workers. Last week Durham university defended the student unions decsion to offer training sessions.  Anna said the training sessions were useful, bevause there were times she was scared.  Another sex worker said they were not interested in the advice. They prefered to get their advice from other sex workers, and not students

Durham university, like Leicester university runs a course on sex work for students. A few students pay for their education by sex work. This could be stripping, selling videos or intimate underwear or working as a Durham escort. Durham university has come in for alot of critism for their course, many people saying they are encouraging students into sex work. Michelle Donelan, the minister for higher and further education, accusing the Russell Group university of “legitimising a dangerous industry” and “badly failing in their duty to protect” students.

Durham have responded to defend their course.

As a responsible University, we strive to ensure that students who may be vulnerable or at risk are protected and have access to the support to which they are entitled,” it said.

The University brought in the external Students Involved in the Adult Sex Industry session in response to requests received over a number of years from a small number of concerned students.”

It added that the session was developed by external trainers who are experts in delivering support to those engaged in sex work.