I'm so confused!

Former Member

Hi guys,
So I turned 16 on Wednesday and I'm a girl. My girlfriend is still 15, and is 16 in June (we're in the same year at school). I'm very confused about sex and the law. My mum says, that because we're both girls and it doesn't involve penetration it doesn't really matter, seeing as we are basically the same age. But I'm confused. I've found sites on the internet that say it doesn't really apply to same sex female couples and that it's not a big deal regarding the law. Without penetration, apparently in the eyes of the law, it doesn't really count and is therefore not illegal.

Is this true? I'd be grateful if someone could help me out a bit here! Would the police really care about a 5 month age difference? That seems unlikely, seeing as we are both in the same year and consensual?
Thank you

Former Member

Hi Bea :wave:

Really good question! I think there is a lot of different information floating about out there so it's understandable that you're confused!

The following is a link to the FPA sexual health charity website which has some useful info about the law on sex: http://www.fpa.org.uk/factsheets/law-on-sex

The references are all valid so we can safely assume the information here is correct! I will just quote the first section from it if you don't want to read it all:

The age of consent to any form of sexual activity is 16 for both men and women. The age of consent is the same regardless of the gender or sexual orientation of a person and whether the sexual activity is between people of the same or different gender.

It is an offence for anyone to have any sexual activity with a person under the age of 16. However, Home Office guidance is clear that there is no intention to prosecute teenagers under the age of 16 where both mutually agree and where they are of a similar age.

Hope that helps!