Scottish Women’s Aid launches programme to help workers spot domestic abuse

Workers across Scotland are being recruited in a new nationwide project to help them play their part in eliminating violence against women and girls.

Equally Safe in Practice (ESiP), launched by Scottish Women’s Aid, aims to encourage workforces across the country to be better equipped to identify behaviours that signal someone at risk.

The project will be launched in collaboration with the Scottish Government, and aims, through training, to provide employees with a a better understanding of women’s inequality, domestic abuse and sexual violence.

Marsha Scott, Chief Executive at Scottish Women’s Aid said: “Violence against women and girls, in all its forms, violates the human rights and dignity of every woman and girl in Scotland.

“This violence both nurtures women’s inequality and is a consequence of it.

“Equipping the Scottish workforce with knowledge, understanding, and the tools necessary to recognise and respond to violence against women and girls is key to challenging the everyday harm and to deliver the outcomes for women, children and young people that Scotland strives for.”

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ESiP is being launched in eight local authorities: Angus, Dundee, East Renfrewshire, Falkirk, Fife, Renfrewshire, South Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire in departments including housing, social care, education and child care.

After the pilot is completed, the programme will be rolled out across Scotland.

Minister for Equalities Christina McKelvie said: “The Scottish Government is clear that violence against women and girls, in any form, is wholly unacceptable; we are committed to working closely with our partners in the statutory and third sectors to prevent and eradicate all forms of gender based violence from Scottish society.

“We are delighted to be working with Scottish Women’s Aid on this vital project to ensure workforces across Scotland have a better understanding of gender based violence, and the norms and cultures that perpetrate it.”

EsiP sits alongside other key strands in the Scottish Government’s Violence against Women strategy, including Equally Safe at Work and Equally Safe in Schools.

For more information visit Scottish Women’s Aid website here.