Violence against women and girls: new research makes recommendations for interventions with young people

Following the evaluation of Peer Heroes, a pilot scheme delivered by Yellow Door - who developed a peer led project with boys and delivered workshops in a Southampton school - a report makes eight recommendations. Nicci King, Chief Executive Officer at Yellow Door, says:

"Supporting children to explore and challenge attitudes is key to ensuring cultural change in our society so we can further prevent violence against women and girls. We are proud that for over 20 years, our STAR Project has been working with children in schools and other settings to explore healthy relationships.

"Peer Heroes builds on this, as it supports children to understand and tackle negative male stereotypes and attitudes that can contribute to violence against women and girls. The recommendations from Solent University's research will support us to develop this work even further locally and have an influence nationally."

The report and its recommendations put forward new insights into violence against women and girls, as well as how to develop a comprehensive offering for working with young people in this context, including:

• When delivering a project in this area, the relationships between misogynistic attitudes, violence against women and girls, and sexual harm needs to be considered clearly.
• It's essential that boys reflect on their own, as well as their peers', attitudes and behaviours when they are participants in projects of this kind.
• Interventions with boys need to thoughtfully consider the voices and experiences of girls, featuring them prominently throughout a project.

Dr Catherine Phipps, Solent's Senior Lecturer Education and Sociology, says: "It's been a pleasure to work on the evaluation of this important project alongside Yellow Door over the past 18 months. The final report demonstrates the value of universities collaborating with charities, schools, and other key stakeholders, and we are keen to continue this impactful work moving forward."

The report has been presented to local stakeholders in Southampton - including the local authority, colleges, universities and charities - and will be available for use by education providers to inform their approach to education and awareness-raising of violence against women and girls.

Professor Philippa Velija, Deputy Dean Research and PG Student Experience at the University of Roehampton, says:

"The evaluation report highlights the ongoing challenges that young people face in addressing sexual harm in their peer groups, as well as the value of working with young people to help them understand and tackle violence against women and girls. The evaluation also highlights the value of academics partnering with organisations and evaluating projects to consider what works and what can be enhanced in future projects."

Any school or organisation interested in finding out more about the pilot scheme and subsequent report can email researchsupport@solent.ac.uk. 

Full list of recommendations

1. Students in the survey and focus groups reported that they were more confident intervening in sexual harassment outside of school, but less confident amongst peers. This is something that future projects should focus on to have impact in schools.
2. The design of the intervention and workshops could be structured on key themes, for example gender norms, misogyny, and sexual harm against women and girls. However, there should be flexibility to focus on some of the problematic experiences in the school at the time of the intervention.
   
   
3. The relationship between misogynistic attitudes, violence against women and girls and sexual harm needs to be considered more clearly in the project.
   
   
4. There is sensitivity around selecting boys to be part of this intervention. In future, schools and project leaders should look at how best to manage this when they are considering the expansion of the project.
   
   
5. The intervention may benefit from more clarity around whether it is focusing on violence against women and girls and/or gender-based violence. Research consistently finds men and boys are the main perpetrators of sexual harassment and sexual violence (even against other men/boys). Boys cannot be victims of violence against women and girls, but they can be victims of gender-based violence. At times, the term violence against women and girls was used when gender-based violence was meant.
   
   
6. With any intervention, the scope and type of output the boys will produce to share in the wider school needs to be considered.
   
   
7. Although the intervention is about boys’ understanding and education on violence against women and girls, it is about girls’ experiences and this needs to be more thoughtfully considered to ensure their voices and experiences feature more prominently through the project.
   
   
8. While statistics on violence against women and girls can have an impact and are helpful to contextualise the extent of the issue, it is important that this is seen as existing on a continuum and a consequence of wider gender inequality. Therefore, boys will need to reflect on their own and their peers’ attitudes and behaviours as part of the project.

If you have been affected by the issues covered in this article or the report please visit Yellow Door. 

If you would like to hear more about the Peer Heroes Project or are a school wanting support please contact info@yellowdoor.org.uk