BU Research Blog

BU’s Centre for Seldom Heard Voices and the Soroptimist’s International Bournemouth Branch hosted a Violence Against Women and Girls: Social Justice in Action conference on 29th June 2023.

The conference included talks and workshops from Dr Liz Dominey from the Soroptimists Bournemouth Club; Sarbjit Athwal, founder of charity True Honour; BU’s Chancellor, Kate Adie CBE; Paula Harriott, Head of Prisoner Engagement at the Prison Reform Trust; Jamie Fletcher and three of his students; Dr Kari Davies; and Dr Louise Oliver and Hannah Gurr. It was also supported by Tina Symington, Community Safety Manager, Housing & Communities Directorate BCP.

A report from the research that took place during the event (via the Problem and Solution Tress and Appreciative Enquiry Event) was submitted this as written evidence to the Women and Equalities Committee’s inquiry, The escalation of violence against women and girls. The report will be available on BRIAN and also the new National Centre for Cross Disciplinary Social Work’s website. If anyone would like an advance read then please email Louise Oliver or Orlanda Harvey.

Key Points Arising from the Conference:

The first set of issues came under the area of changes needed in social policy and direct practice (top down and bottom-up working). This focussed in particular on:

a) Long-term, sustainable funding to resource support, interventions and preventions.
b) Increased flexibility in support so that the services ‘fit in with the clients’ not ‘the clients forced to fit in’ with services.
c) Wraparound support for frontline staff working in this field.
d) A need to create more safe spaces in places where victims/survivors can go to without suspicion from the abuser, e.g., GP and school.
e) A need to make reporting easier from members of the public to professionals, including quick referrals as they are better than none.

The second main area was the identification of what needs to be continued (and developed) in policy and direct practice. Examples of local and national good practice were identified in the following areas, participants were in agreement that these should be continued and built on:

a) Multi-agency working.
b) Legislation and policy to intervene/prevents VAWG.
c) Support for those experienced VAWG e.g., support groups and refuges.
d) Small charities working together.
e) More knowledge exchange and training about VAWG, for example, more conferences which bring different professionals together.
f) A broad range of evidence-based offender/perpetrator programmes.
g) Early intervention work especially more work done in early years education around relationships, gender and family violence.
h) Awareness of these issues within the public domain particularly in social media.