Agenda item

As noted in item 8.

The Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care introduced the report.

It was explained that safeguarding was a key area of work for the Council. Violence against women and girls was recognised as a significant issue relating to safety and equality within the borough. Women and girls in Haringey experienced fear, control and abuse in a range of settings, including within homes, relationships and public spaces. The scale of violence against women and girls was substantial, and there was recognition that existing systems did not always meet needs effectively. Survivors continued to encounter barriers to accessing support, services could be fragmented, and some women and girls, including those from marginalised communities, reported concerns about their access to protection and support.

The Cabinet Member highlighted that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee's review into the prevention of violence against women and girls was welcomed. The review examined both preventative work in schools to address harmful attitudes and behaviours, and community-based support to help ensure that people could access assistance when required.

The Cabinet Member explained that the Council considered tackling violence against women and girls to be linked to its wider objectives of reducing inequality, addressing discrimination and promoting a fairer society. This included a commitment to supporting women and girls, whether trans or cisgender, and recognising the violence, abuse and harassment experienced by gender-diverse people. It was stressed that the response to the recommendations reflected this commitment. Measures included strengthening staff training, expanding community-based support, improving learning from short-term projects, and linking work on violence against women and girls with suicide prevention and bereavement support. The Council also committed to developing a new Gender Based Violence (GBV) Strategy from 2027, with a focus on children and young people, including online harms.

It was stressed that the Council recognised that trans people, including trans women, trans men and non-binary people, experienced domestic abuse, sexual violence and harassment, and could face additional barriers when seeking support. The approach therefore sought to ensure the availability of services that were safe, accessible and non-discriminatory. In light of this, consideration was given to adopting "gender-based violence" (GBV) as a broader framework, reflecting the view that violence linked to gender affected a wider range of people while maintaining a focus on forms of abuse that disproportionately affected women and girls. The Council therefore committed to developing a broader Gender Based Violence Strategy from 2027, with a focus on children and young people, including online harms. It was recognised that these issues could not be resolved immediately. However, the Council committed to maintaining a focus on addressing gender-based violence and to implementing a response that was practical, acknowledged existing constraints, and aligned with its stated priorities.

It was stressed that the Cabinet welcomed the review to push further at the Council’s response to Violene Against Women and Girls (VAWG). It was explained that the response to the recommendations highlighted the Council’s commitment to supporting all those victims of VAWG. It was additionally noted that trans residents faced additional barriers seeking help, and that the Council was committed to ensuring that services were available for trans residents easily to ensure their safety and wellbeing.

It was additionally noted that the Council was working to develop a gender-based violence strategy to seek to alleviate these issues as much as possible.

Following questions from Councillors Twigg the following information was shared:

• It was explained that the Council provided specialist services which would ensure the safety of residents suffering from VAWG, despite demand pressures. it was noted that service users reported improved outcomes from the utilisation of the services. It was noted that advocacy services had been well utilised. It was also noted that the Protect our Women programme, had reached a significant number of people and provided a valuable service.
  
  
• It was explained that there was a wide spectrum of services that could be utilised by service users which could be tailored to create a specific approach for service users.