Violence Against Women and Girls. Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is an umbrella term used to cover a wide range of abuses against women and girls such as domestic homicide, domestic abuse, sexual assault, abuse experienced as a child, female genital mutilation (FGM), forced marriage, misogynistic behaviours by Incels (involuntary celibates) and harassment in work and public life. While men and boys also suffer from many of these forms of abuse, they disproportionately affect women. It is a topic of even greater public interest following several high-profile cases in recent years, including the murders of Xxxxx Xxxxxxx, Xxxxxx Xxxxx, and the Kent Police Community Support Officer, Xxxxx Xxxxx. In 2021/22 the Home Office published a Strategy on Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls; the Kent Police and Crime Commissioner’s (PCC) Police and Crime Plan entitled ‘Making Kent Safer 2022-2025’ includes this issue as a priority; alongside this the PCC also set up a Violence Against Women (VAWG) inquiry which included an online survey, meetings with victims and working with partners to develop a series of tangible recommendations to improve practices in Kent. In addition, VAWG was added as a new priority in 2022/23 for the Kent Community Safety Partnership (KCSP) as detailed in Chapter 6 of this document.
Violence Against Women and Girls. Violence against women and girls (VAWG) has rightly become a national focus, our communities have been shocked and appalled at the tragic murders of Xxxxx Xxxxx, Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx, Xxxxx Xxxxxxx and Xxxxxx Xxxxx, all kidnaped and murdered by men in public spaces – there is a palpable sense of anger, fear and unrest amongst women who do not feel safe on our streets. The actions of these individuals have eroded public trust and have made women frightened to walk our streets. Whilst the murders of the above women have shone a spotlight on VAWG within our communities, they are not the only women to have lost their lives as a result of men’s violence – In the weeks following the abduction of Xxxxx Xxxxxxx on the 3rd of March 2021, a further 80 women have been killed where a man is the principal suspect. In Sussex Local Authorities have worked closely with the Office of Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner to identify the priorities we need to take action on and to best utilise government funding to ensure that women feel safer in public spaces and within the night-time economy. This has resulted in the successful application for additional funding to provide physical safety improvements, including additional streetlighting, increased specialist police and innovative alternative safety provisions, alongside prevention and education work and comprehensive communications campaigns. We have consulted with our communities, charities, expert, and ‘by and for’ services as well as women who are actively working within the activism space in order that we understand the experiences of women and girls across Sussex. Whilst tackling street harassment, domestic, and sexual violence and abuse remains some of our highest profile work in eliminating VAWG, we are equally committed to raising the profile of, and eliminating other ‘hidden xxxxx’ and harmful practices that predominantly effect women and girls. These may include, but are not limited to, forced marriage and ‘so called’ honour-based violence and abuse, FGM (female genital mutilation) and child marriage. A multi-agency approach is in place to raise the profile of FGM and other harmful practices and to identify and ensure that timely and appropriate support is accessible to those that need it. The Community Safety Partnership welcomes additional funding that has been made available to provide ‘by and for’ services to ethnic minority women. West Sussex has benefitted from the relaunch of the countywide VAWG forum – bringi...
Violence Against Women and Girls. Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is an umbrella term used to cover a wide range of abuses against women and girls such as domestic homicide, domestic abuse, sexual assault, abuse experienced as a child, female genital mutilation (FGM), forced marriage, misogynistic behaviours by XxXxxx (involuntary celibates) and harassment in work and public life. While men and boys also suffer from many of these forms of abuse, they disproportionately affect women. It is a topic of even greater public interest following several recent high-profile cases, including the murders of Xxxxx Xxxxxxx, Xxxxxx Xxxxx, and the Kent Police Community Support Officer, Xxxxx Xxxxx. During the last 12 months the Home Office has published a Strategy on Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls; and the Kent Police and Crime Commissioner’s new Police and Crime Plan entitled ‘Making Kent Safer 2022- 2025’ includes this issue as a priority. In addition, the Kent Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) has also set up a Violence Against Women (VAWG) inquiry which includes an online survey, meetings with victims and working with partners to develop a series of tangible recommendations to improve practices in Kent.
