New scheme launched across Ashfield in bid to promote healthy relationships

The bespoke programme is being delivered across Kirkby as part of the £750,000 Home Office funding secured by the Community Safety Partnership to help end violence against women and girls and make public spaces safer.

Ashfield Council, Nottinghamshire Police and Caroline Henry, Nottinghamshire police and crime commissioner, have teamed up with domestic abuse charity Equation and schools to deliver the course.

The programme provides interactive and awareness sessions to address gender-based violence, domestic abuse and adverse behaviours towards women and girls.

The sessions will help build a young person’s understanding of relationships, encourage young people to aspire to have healthy relationships and begin to recognise when relationships become unhealthy. The projects will also raise awareness of support services available for young people such as Juno Women’s Aid and Childline.

The projects are designed to:

• Raise self-esteem, confidence and aspirations’
• Improve understanding about the young peoples’ selves and their identity’
• Promote choice’
• Promote benefit to working with others’
• Encourage healthy relationships and access to support’
• Increase understanding of young peoples’ rights and responsibilities over their own bodies.

Coun Helen-Ann Smith, council deputy leader and executive member for community safety and crime reduction, said: “The council and its partners are positively engaging with local schools to address domestic abuse, improve feelings of safety and provide safe spaces for young people.

“Through the £750,000 Safer Streets funding we have secured, we are delivering a number of initiatives to enhance community safety and make the District a safer place to live, work and visit.”

Mrs Henry said: “Promoting healthy relationships from a young age is so important when it comes to preventing violence against women and girls because it is much harder to unravel entrenched toxic attitudes in adults.

“Safer Streets funding is allowing us to reach even more young people who will hopefully grow up to care for and respect their partners. By instilling the right attitudes now it will prevent issues such as misogyny and domestic violence in the future.”

Antonio Taylor, council community safety manager, said: “We are committed to addressing violence against women and girls and making our public spaces safer.

“Early discussions with young people are important to help understand what a healthy relationship is and what is acceptable.

“The work will promote confidence to make healthy choices, how to access support and report incidents if any concerns arise.’’

Anthea Tainton, Equation chief executive officer, said: “We are delighted to be building on the work being delivered across schools in the Ashfield area.

“Our targeted projects help us engage with those young people who want to learn and understand more about healthy relationships.

“Young people know they want to have and deserve to have healthy relationships, but don’t always understand what that looks like.

“Equation’s projects support young people to identify healthy qualities, make positive choices alongside building self-esteem and confidence.”