In light of Women’s History month, Forge went to the ‘let’s talk about abuse’ panel, to open the conversation about abuse against women.
The event invited a range of panellists including charity, non profit organisations and sports club captains.
The panel was organised by Lucy Potter from Sheffield Raising and Giving (Sheffield RAG) and Sheffield SU Women’s Student Officer, Eloise Taylor, she opened with: “This conversation matters because abuse against women is still underrepresented and underreported.”
The charity panel began the discussion, with representatives from Together Women, YWCA Yorkshire, Mums In Need and Catcalls of Sheffield.
Together Women is a charity that supports women and girls across North England, with particular focus on women who are involved in the criminal justice system.
Camilla Brokenshire, a representative from Together Women, said: “The difficulty is that abuse is so hard to identify for the person experiencing it.”
“It is intentional, well planned, and calculated.”
YWCA Yorkshire provides support for homeless young women. Claire Harding, a representative from the charity, talked about the support they offer to someone who has or is currently experiencing abuse.
Claire said: “We see everyone as an individual. We listen to them, spend time with them and we believe them.”
“Sometimes they’re not ready for therapy, so we listen until they are.”
Claire Harding also spoke about Clare’s Law, where women can find out about the criminal record of a partner. It is also known as the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, a police policy giving you the right to know if your partner has an abusive past.
Demelza, a representative from Mums In Need, talked about the lack of funding and support for survivors of abuse. She said:
“There are long waiting lists to get therapy on the NHS. By the time they get to the front of it, they might have already taken their life.”
At the end of the panel, the representatives spoke about what can be done to better support issues around abuse. Importance was placed on campaigns, donations and funding.
Florence Rushton and Babhravi Krishnan, co-founders of Catcalls of Sheffield, talked about the importance of education and awareness.
Florence Rushton said: “The systems that are meant to support us, the police or the justice system, don’t really do their job.”
She continued: “We need to know what healthy relationships look like. Think about intersectionality; if people aren’t taught about what abuse can look like in their relationship, then they will not know.”
Babhravi Krishnan added: “It’s about tackling people’s internalised conceptions of how abuse looks or works, and that it is never the victim’s fault.”
Camilla Brokenshire said: “If you see a situation, try and speak up, if it’s safe to, and keep campaigning.”
In a relationship, we need to prioritise our own privacy more. She said: “Personal boundaries are quite important, you can say no and are entitled to your space.”
After the charity panel, we were joined by Arm Wrestling World Champion, Agy Gorzynska, and sport representatives on a sports panel.
Scarlett Brahms, Social Secretary of women’s cricket, talked about the importance of sport and how it can foster an inclusive community. She said:
“Sport provides a safe space where girls can talk about their problems outside of their normal social group, escaping from tasks of everyday life.”
Anne Mynors, Club Captain of fencing, talked about having safe spaces in sport where people can talk to someone. She said:
“We have inclusion hours, where you can come speak to the inclusion officers and see what can be done.”
She mentioned that fencing has GIAGs that are specific to different groups, to make it as inclusive as possible. Recently, they had a women’s only GIAG.
As March is Women’s History Month, there are a number of other events taking place. Find out more on Women’s Student Officer, Eloise Taylor’s Instagram @sheffsu.womenstudents.
Written by Rosie Deacon & Anneli Brett
