A new Portsmouth Violence Against Women and Girls’ strategy has launched, taking a city-wide approach to addressing abusive, unhealthy and unacceptable behaviour.
The strategy which can be read here, shows that women and girls continue to be disproportionally affected by domestic abuse, sexual violence and harassment in the city.
It aims to create a safer city by tackling gender-based violence through proactive community engagement, supporting victims, and challenging abusive behaviours.
The strategy has been created by a range of organisations in Portsmouth, including Portsmouth City Council and police, and was launched to coincide with International Women’s Day.
Councillor Lee Hunt, Cabinet Member for Safety in the Community said:
“The council is committed to reducing the ongoing epidemic of violence against women and girls. In Portsmouth we want everyone to feel safe, and this strategy outlines how we will continue to work to create a safer and healthier city for those who live, work and visit.
“It is important that we use International Women’s Day to highlight looking out for one another and being confident to call out unhealthy behaviours.
“We encourage you to keep the conversation going and accelerate gender equality.”
Key priorities of the new strategy include early intervention, prevention, and making public spaces safer, alongside promoting organisational change to support victims and hold perpetrators accountable.
It has been developed in collaboration with a wide range of statutory, voluntary, and community organisations across Portsmouth. Insight also came from a city-wide survey in which over 800 residents shared their experiences.
District Commander for Portsmouth, Superintendent Paul Markham said:
“We are very clear that violence, intimidation, misogyny, sexism and harassment of any kind towards women and girls is not acceptable in any form. That is why we are committed to identifying and relentlessly pursuing perpetrators, especially those who purposely set out to target and cause intentional harm to women and girls.
“We continue to focus on tackling perpetrators, building trust and confidence in our communities, supporting victims and creating safer spaces. A key part of our work in Portsmouth is our collaborative approach with partner agencies, for example the night-time economy that combines high-visibility patrols alongside work with licensed premises, our partners including Portsmouth City Council, and volunteer organisations like the Street Pastors.”
Portsmouth’s Violence Against Women and Girls’ (VAWG) strategy can be found online: Violence against women and girls – Safer Portsmouth