The Women's Resource Centre, along with the other members of the End Violence Against Women coalition, welcome the new cross-Government strategy on violence against women and girls, released today.
We are particularly pleased to see the emphasis on prevention, with education for young people and public awareness campaigns, as we believe only through a wholesale change in attitudes towards violence against women and girls will we be able to rid ourselves of this violence which blights so many lives, and costs so many others.
We are also pleased to see funding for support for survivors of violence, and the promise of new services. We hope that this strategy will be backed up by sustainable funding for the vital women's services that do so much to support women to find safety and to recover from their traumatic experiences.
We echo the words of Professor Liz Kelly (Chair of the End Violence Against Women coalition):
"We are delighted that the government is launching an integrated strategy on
all forms of violence against women, including rape, domestic violence, trafficking and forced marriage. We welcome the focus on stopping violence before it starts through education and public campaigns.
"When consulted on the strategy,
women stressed the importance of women-only services and places where they could seek support in confidence. So it's vital that the strategy sustains and extends frontline women's services, particularly as the vast majority of women still do not report to the police."
Rape Crisis (England and Wales), which supports the network of Rape Crisis Centres, points out that many of the recommendations will lead to an increase in referrals but not necessarily the required resources to meet that demand:"Rape Crisis (England and Wales) welcomes the Violence against Women and
Girls Strategy launched today with its commitment to joined up working
across government departments. The strategy ensures that tackling
violence against women is a clear priority within health, schools and
the criminal justice system. The consultation encouraged women
throughout England and Wales to raise and discuss issues about
violence, thousands took part and more than 300 individual women
attended focus groups - sometimes at the expense of their own personal
safety.
Whilst we welcome the strategy, we are disappointed
that it does not go far enough; most specifically the lack of mandatory
training on sexual violence issues for all police force areas and for
social workers. Also absent is the promised future sustainable funding
for Rape Crisis. We are concerned that many of the Actions and
Recommendations highlighted within the strategy will lead to an
increase in referrals to Rape Crisis Centres; and that
without adequate
resources to meet that extra demand, Centres will continue to struggle
to survive."
Sandra Horley, Chief Executive of Refuge, also calls for immediate funding for women's services to help protect and support women and girls:"Refuge is pleased that the Government's new strategy focuses on preventing violence against women and girls. This huge social issue will only end when people are educated about why it happens and where they can get help.
"Prevention will help in the long-term, but in the meantime
there is an urgent need for services for abused women and children. Whilst we acknowledge that additional funding has been pledged, much more will be needed if we are to reach every single woman and girl. As it stands, one third of local authorities still provide no domestic violence services whatsoever."
Imkaan , a national charity which supports Asian Women's refuges, also welcomes the strategy but has concerns about its limited proposals for marginalised women and girls who experience violence: "Imkaan welcomes the launch of the government’s VAWG strategy. The strategy provides a platform which we can use to ensure that all forms of violence against women and girls are recognised, challenged and ultimately eradicated. After decades of campaigning by individual women and organisations, we finally have state recognition that violence against women and girls is unacceptable. We particularly welcome the commitment to strengthen work with children and young people as we consider this to be crucial if we are to shift attitudes and create meaningful long-term change. Other notable positives of the strategy are:
- The exploration of a wide-ranging VAWG indicator
- Increased investment in non-statutory provision for victims of rape
- The cross-departmental approach to VAWG
Naturally,
we do have some concerns about gaps in the strategy, particularly with respect to marginalised women and girls and the barriers they face in accessing appropriate services. We hope that the follow-on pieces which are linked to the strategy, such as the commissioning guidance, will do more to ensure that these areas are addressed.
Imkaan would like to publicly acknowledge the hard-work and commitment of everyone that had a hand in making this happen!"
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