Identity
Your identity is all about knowing who you are and proclaiming yourself to the world.
The most obvious thing about identity is how you look. Do you know if you are old enough to have a tattoo? What if your hair starts fallling out after a trip to the hairdresser? or if that navel piercing goes bad? There are a lot of consumer rights tied up with your looks.
On a deeper level, you may be experiencing bullying, loneliness, or discrimination because you are perceived to be "different" - perhaps due to your skin colour, disability. or sexuality. We can help with strategic and legal advice for this sort of problem, and we can put you in touch with organisations that can provide specialist emotional and personal support.
Body Piercing
There are no legal restrictions on the age at which a child or young person can have her/his ears or other body parts pierced.
However, some establishments may operate their own informal guidelines on obtaining parental consent.
Tattoos
It is an offence to tattoo a child or young person unless it is performed for medical reasons by a qualified medical practitioner.
Someone who tattoos anyone under 18 can be prosecuted unless s/he can show s/he had good cause to believe the person was over 18.