Police Scotland would like to encourage more women to consider becoming a Police Officer in Scotland.
We are hosting an online recruitment event aimed at women on Monday 10/01/22 from 6.30pm – 8pm via MS Teams.
Email to sign up: recruitmentpositiveactionteam@scotland.pnn.police.uk
All women in the area are welcome to join us next Friday 17 Dec at 10am-12pm for a special online wellbeing event.
Learn how to treat yourself in facial reflexology and Indian head massage.
Contact Sally 07518756330 or sallyfindlay@pchp.org.uk to sign up and recieve the zoom link
Police Scotland would like to encourage more women to consider becoming a police officer in Scotland.
We are hosting a 90 minute online recruitment event. The event is aimed at women, to provide an insight into the role of a police officer/special constable. You will learn about the recruitment process, the training involved and the endless opportunities which would be available to you as you embark on this journey. Women are currently under-represented in the Police and it is hoped the event will inspire you to consider a career in policing.
The event will be hosted on Microsoft Teams tomorrow – Wednesday 1st December – between 6.30pm – 8pm.
To sign up, please email: recruitmentpositiveactionteam@scotland.pnn.police.uk
● More than a third of women (35%) have changed an aspect of themselves because of negative comments made by an intimate partner, increasing to 39% for 25-34 year olds
● Over a third (36%) of women have insecurities about their self-worth based on negative comments made by a partner
● 81% believe more needs to be done to educate young men on their beliefs and attitudes towards women
● Avon launches campaign to speak out against verbal abuse with resources, training and support for customers, Representatives and associates
● In its 135th year, Avon donates $1.35 million to NGOs around the world to support women who have experienced abuse
New research from beauty company Avon and the NO MORE Foundation reveals that one in five women are consistently subjected to verbal abuse by an intimate partner.
The research, which surveyed over 8,300 women in eight countries, including the UK, Poland and the Philippines, also found that nearly two in five respondents aged 25-34 are experiencing potential signs of verbal abuse within their relationship – the highest amongst the age groups. As a result, over a third (36%) of women around the world have insecurities about their self-worth based on negative comments made by partners.
Commissioned in support of the UN’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, Avon and NO MORE are launching a campaign to help everyone recognise verbal abuse and its role in coercive control, domestic violence or intimate partner violence.
In the UK, when asked about seeking support for verbal abuse issues, one in 10 (11%) women reported that they did not know where to turn, and a further one in six (17%) were unable to take action due to having a controlling partner or being too scared of the consequences.
These barriers to help-seeking behaviours result in many survivors becoming trapped in abusive relationships.
Common comments
Nearly half (47%) of women have experienced negative comments from an intimate partner about their general appearance, with one in five (19%) facing this within the last month.
Other negative comments reported were about women’s intelligence (43%), job or career (44%), weight (50%) and clothing (50%).
This is most prevalent in those aged 25-34 with nearly a quarter (24%) being subjected to negative remarks about their weight within the last month, compared to 10% of those aged 55+.
Over half of women say an intimate partner has made criticisms towards their friends or family (55%), with nearly a quarter (23%) experiencing this within the last month; this is a common tactic used by abusers to manipulate their victims to alienate them from loved ones.
NO MORE Foundation’s Global Executive Director Pamela Zaballa said: “Verbal abuse is a serious, prevalent issue that takes a huge and often long-lasting toll on the self-esteem and confidence of those who experience it. It also can be a precursor and escalate to physical violence.
“Therefore, it is critical to increase awareness and ensure that verbal abuse is not overlooked, trivialised nor tolerated. We’re proud to partner with Avon to promote an online portal providing crucial information and tools to learn to recognise the signs of verbal abuse, find help if needed, and become inspired by courageous survivors’ stories.”
From Silence to Speaking Out
Of those subjected to signs of verbal abuse, 16% sought support, with 30% of these women going to a family member and 26% reaching out to a friend.
Despite a relatively small number in this survey, it is interesting that some respondents said they had sought support from the outside sources such as beauty therapists or hairdressers (2%) and their Avon Representatives (2%).
In a controlling relationship, where the abuser has isolated the victim from friends and family, it may be the case that these groups can provide an important lifeline.
With a network of relationships within their communities and peer to peer support available, Avon is offering training to its five million Representatives worldwide. In the UK, Women’s Aid and Avon are piloting a specialist training programme in Bristol for Representatives, offering on-the-ground, community support for those facing abuse in any form.
Training is also being offered to a range of GBV Ambassadors, offering support to associates who may be experiencing domestic abuse through Avon’s global GBV Protocol.
Not only a “Women’s Issue”
There is a strong feeling amongst women around the world that more needs to be done to educate young men on their beliefs and attitudes towards women (81%), with over three quarters believing there are deep-rooted issues within society which need to be addressed in terms of how men treat women.
Breaking the silence around gender-based violence, Avon and NO MORE have launched an online portal to provide people with crucial information about the signs of verbal abuse, what to do if someone you know is in an abusive relationship and where to go for help, including a collection of inspiring stories from survivors.
To support women who have experienced abuse, Avon is also donating $1.35 million in grants to NGOs around the world to fund support projects for life after abuse, in its 135th anniversary year.
In the UK, funding will support charities such as Women’s Aid and their Live Chat service which gives survivors a discreet and safe way to chat to an expert, as well as the National Domestic Abuse Helpline and Live Chat, ran by Refuge.
In addition, the beauty brand and charity are encouraging people to sign a pledge to end verbal abuse. This can be signed by saying ‘Alexa, open the NO MORE skill’ to an Alexa device or online via the Avon Worldwide website.
Angela Cretu, Avon CEO comments: “Our research highlights how crucial it is that we continue to stimulate conversation about all forms of gender-based abuse, be that verbal, emotional or physical.
“Over the last 15 years Avon has made it our mission to end violence against women and break down the wall of silence.
“With five million Representatives around the world, all with their own unique networks, we are committed to training in recognising the signs, having safe conversations, and signposting to local NGO support.
“We have also introduced a GBV Protocol and Ambassadors to support every associate who may be experiencing domestic abuse, for example offering them access to leave or facilitating conversations with managers.
“This 16 Days of Activism we are calling for people unsure of what verbal abuse is, to get to know the signs; for victims feeling isolated, to know they are not alone; and for those experiencing abuse, to seek necessary help.
This is why this year, on its 135th year of championing women, Avon will donate $1.35 million to NGOs around the world to help more women overcome abuse and help change lives.”
For more information and if you need support, visit:
www.avonworldwide.com/supporting-women
to access the NO MORE directory.
MONDAYS at 11am
#ChatCafe is back
#FaceToFace in @RoystonWardieCC Mondays at 11am
Booking is essential so please contact carlasayer@pchp.org.uk 07595589343
At its COP26 Gender Day today (Tuesday 9 November), the UK will announce £165 million to tackle climate change while addressing the inequalities that make women and girls more vulnerable to climate change and empowering them to take climate action.
Around the world, the UN has found that women are more vulnerable to the effects of climate change than men, in part because they constitute a large majority of the world’s poor and often depend on small-scale farming for a livelihood, which is particularly vulnerable to climate change. Women and children can comprise 80% of those displaced by climate-related disaster. But addressing gender inequality has also been proven to advance efforts to tackle climate change.
£165 million in UK funding will drive forward these aims:
The chair of the flagship Gender Day event, UK International Champion on Adaptation and Resilience for the COP26 Presidency, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, said: “It is women, girls and those who are already most marginalised, that will be most severely impacted by climate change. But they also have a critical role to play to address the climate crisis.
“The UK is committed to addressing this dual challenge head on, committing new funding to empower communities and women’s groups to take locally-led adaptation action, to build local, national and global resilience. I urge more countries to make commitments to implement the UNFCCC Gender Action Plan and deliver the goals of the Feminist Action for Climate Justice.”
Through its COP26 Presidency, the UK has been urging countries around the world to put gender equality at the heart of climate action, and will today convene ministers and other actors to discuss new action to tackle gender and climate change. A number of countries and stakeholders will also announce bold new gender and climate commitments today.
The UK will jointly launch a toolkit on gender-smart climate finance. Co-led by CDC, the UK’s Development Finance Institution, the toolkit will improve understanding on the opportunities of gender-sensitive climate investment by providing guidance to the finance community on how to deliver climate outcomes while promoting gender equality and women’s economic opportunities.
Fatou Jeng, Founder, Clean Earth Gambia and Co-Lead YOUNGO Women and Gender working group, said: “Gender inequality creates additional burdens and barriers for women and girls during times of conflict and climate-related crisis which increases their risks of hunger, food insecurity and violence. But women play fundamental roles in local food systems and are carers and activists, which make them uniquely placed to drive longer term climate resilience.
“Women should be involved in the policy making, project planning and implementation of climate adaptation projects, and gender equality should be a key portion in climate financing. If gender equality is not taken as a serious issue in our climate decision-making, climate financing and climate adaptation processes, it will undermine opportunities for women in vulnerable communities to drive effective climate change adaptation and mitigation approaches that meet their needs.”
COP26 President Alok Sharma and Anne-Marie Trevelyan will host the UK’s Presidency Gender Day event accompanied by Little Amal, the 3.5 metre puppet travelling 8,000km in support of refugees, and Brianna Fruean, a Samoan Climate Change activist.
The First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, will speak along with youth advocate Fatou Jeng, UN Women Deputy Executive Director Asa Regner and Indigenous activist Tarcila Rivera Zea, for a discussion on how to enable gender equality through climate actions. The Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, will also address the event.
Minister for Europe and the Americas, Wendy Morton, will also announce the UK’s new commitment to develop a FCDO girls’ education and climate policy to help secure concerted global action on climate change in the education sector, to prevent climate change disrupting girls’ education and empowering girls to take climate action.
This follows COP26 Youth and Public Empowerment Day last week, where the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Girls’ Education Helen Grant announced support for girls’ education in the face of climate change. This includes an £85,000 research grant to support the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre. The Centre will produce better information on the education needs of refugee children to enable a more effective international response.
TOMORROW, Tuesday 26th October, SHE Scotland celebrates its 4th birthday with a very special event.
Embrace It Aw captures thoughts, feelings and research around the rise of social media and reduction in our self esteem.
Come along and Embrace It Aw!
A Glasgow charity that supports vulnerable young women has received a £2,000 donation from Amazon Development Centre Scotland in Edinburgh.
SAY Women offers safe, semi-supported accommodation and emotional support for young women aged 16 to 25 who are survivors of sexual abuse, rape or sexual assault. The charity also supports women who are homeless or threatened with homelessness.
The charity allocates tenants a key worker who provides practical and emotional support through a care plan system. This donation will go towards a winter package for young women with some fuel and food vouchers.
Amazon previously supported the charity with a donation earlier this year.
Graeme Smith, Managing Director at Amazon Development Centre Scotland, said: “SAY Women is a great charity offering vital services in to the Glasgow community.
“The staff and volunteers go that extra mile to ensure the safety of young women and we hope this donation will help the charity continue its services.”
Pam Hunter, CEO at SAY Women, said: “I would like to thank Graeme and the team for their continued support this year.
“It’s been a particularly difficult time for vulnerable women, so our services are needed more than ever. Thank you, Amazon.”
Kaukab Stewart, Member of the Scottish Parliament for Glasgow Kelvin, added: “I welcome this donation to SAY Women. As winter will be soon upon us, Amazon’s efforts will make a significant contribution to lifeline services for sexually-abused young women facing homelessness.
“I urge other corporations to join Amazon in supporting SAY Women.”
Amazon Development Centre Scotland has been based in Edinburgh since 2004 and is responsible for devising and growing innovations that bring new levels of choice and convenience to hundreds of millions of customers around the world.
It houses teams of leading engineers, scientists, designers and product managers who work on everything from interactive user interface design to large-scale distributed systems and machine learning.
Community donations are one of a number of ways in which Amazon is supporting communities across the UK during COVID-19.
Throughout the pandemic Amazon has provided disadvantaged students with free online STEM resources and supported virtual classrooms with no-cost resources from AWS and Amazon Future Engineer.
The company has also teamed up with charity partner Magic Breakfast to deliver more than four million healthy breakfasts to children at risk of hunger in disadvantaged areas around the UK.
For more information on how Amazon is supporting the UK during COVID-19, click: https://blog.aboutamazon.co.uk/amazons-actions-to-help-employees-communities-and-customers-affected-by-covid-19.
Lothians list MSP Foysol Choudhury has called for co-operation to keep women safe following reports of drinks spiking incidents in Edinburgh.
The Labour MSP said: “Many constituents have been in touch regarding the recent reported spiking incidents in Edinburgh. The council has implemented a number of measures to ensure women’s safety, particularly during the night-time economy.
“This includes a a network of 193 interconnected CCTV cameras in locations that have been identified as real or emerging hotspots for antisocial or other behaviour that can compromise safety.
“A network of an additional 13 mobile CCTV cameras are also deployed on a weekly basis to ensure safety in public places. All permanent and mobile CCTV cameras are monitored 24-hours, 7 days per week.
“They are also interlinked and connected with Shop Watch, Pub Watch and Police radio, so as soon as an incident or concern arises, an immediate coordinated response is triggered.
“This response can involve Police officers, and/or Street Assist , whose responsibility is to support people who are identified as being potentially vulnerable.
“The Edinburgh Community Safety Partnership provides Transport Marshalls for our busiest taxi ranks located on Lothian Road, the High Street, and Leith Street, who make sure that passengers are safe while waiting for and upon entering a black cab, on Fridays and Saturdays from 10pm to 4.30am.
“Currently licenced premises are required to perform more checks in terms of collecting more visitor information than ever before.
“I intend to monitor the situation in the City and look to ask questions in Parliament.”
Police Scotland said: “We are aware of posts circulating on social media about spiking incidents involving injections in Scotland.Officers are carrying out enquiries, and a small number of reports from the Edinburgh, Dundee and Glasgow areas are being investigated.
“These do not appear to be linked.We take all reports seriously and we would encourage anyone who believes they have been a victim of spiking in any form to contact Police via 101.”
To mark World Menopause Day tomorrow (18th October), NHS 24 has launched new resources on the menopause on NHS Inform, Scotland’s trusted health information site.
Working in partnership with Scottish Government, the resources support the ambitions laid out in the Women’s Health Plan and include information about what to expect whether you’re going through the menopause or want to support someone with symptoms.
Women’s Health Minister Maree Todd said: “Women have told us, and evidence shows, that when they are well informed about the menopause, and know what to expect, their experience can be more positive. Knowledge, information and myth busting is powerful.
“I am pleased to see this comprehensive menopause platform on NHS Inform, a key deliverable from our recently published Women’s Health Plan.
“We want to ensure that anyone experiencing menopause has the care and support that they need, and this platform is an important step in achieving that aim.”
Dr Laura Ryan, Medical Director at NHS 24, said: “Menopause can affect everyone differently, and many of us are still unfamiliar with the common symptoms, how these might present, and what to expect if you or someone you know is going through ‘the change’.
“World Menopause Day aims to raise awareness of these and the support options available for improving health and wellbeing. Our new resources on NHS Inform are clinically assured and contain lots of information on signs of menopause, potential treatments, managing your wellbeing, and supporting others through their own symptoms.
“The resources also include ways to manage symptoms with some self-care, and what to do if you feel concerned that your experiences are unusual.
“Sometimes the menopause can have impacts on lots of aspects of life including self-esteem and mental health. These resources are a great way to feel knowledgeable about the experience and empowered in taking any next steps.”
Visit NHSinform.scot for updated information, including a range of videos aimed at dispelling common myths about the menopause.
