Strengthening partnerships through research to tackle male violence against women and girls in Plymouth
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Plymouth
Department Name: Peninsula Medical School
Abstract
This project aims to understand what is important for reducing and preventing Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) in Plymouth. Police and partner organisations in Plymouth already work together in the city's Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence Partnership. This includes Plymouth City Council, health services and charities supporting victims or working with perpetrators.
The Plymouth VAWG Commission was set up following the devastating murders in Plymouth of Maxine Davison, Sophie Martin and Kate Sheperd in Keyham in August 2021 and the murder of Bobbi-Anne McLeod in November 2021. The Commission covers VAWG in all forms. It includes representatives from the Police, partner organisations, researchers and other members of the community from Plymouth.
The Commission has listened to the experiences and concerns of the people of Plymouth in relation to VAWG. This includes women and girls who have experienced violence. The Commission has also listened to the Police and partner organisations about how VAWG is being addressed in the city.
Recommendations about how Plymouth will reduce and prevent VAWG will be launched by the Commission in June 2022. Devon and Cornwall Police have also produced an Action Plan to reduce and prevent VAWG across Devon and Cornwall. It is important that the Police Action Plan is made relevant to the specific needs of Plymouth as highlighted by the VAWG Commission Recommendations.
This project aims to (1) understand what the Police, partner organisations and people who live in Plymouth think is most important to reduce and prevent VAWG in Plymouth, and (2) develop projects to tackle those specific areas.
This work will have three phases:
1. Identify the priorities of services in Plymouth by listening to a variety of organisations that work with victims and survivors of VAWG or support people who commit violent acts against women and girls. We will also listen to members of the public across Plymouth. These include women and girls, men and boys, women who are homeless, women who have experienced violence, women who are migrants and asylum seekers, women with disabilities, women with experience of sex work and men with a history of violence to women and/or girls. Once we have listened, we will work with people from those groups to decide between 4 and 6 priorities that should be taken forward to the next stage of the project.
2. Map work that is and isn't already happening in Plymouth: We will again listen to organisations and public groups to understand what is happening in Plymouth to help prevent or reduce VAWG. We will take the priorities agreed in the previous phase and map where services in Plymouth are providing support. We will also identify gaps in what people in Plymouth think they need to prevent or reduce VAWG. From this we will work with organisations and the public to identify important questions that could be answered by research.
3. Develop priority project teams: We will bring together teams of Police, partner organisations and members of the public together with researchers to develop projects to answer the research questions. We will support teams to write project proposals and either work on smaller projects or apply for funding to work on larger projects.
We will present the work of the project through a variety of events in locations across the city and to a range of audiences to promote the impact of the work.
The Plymouth VAWG Commission was set up following the devastating murders in Plymouth of Maxine Davison, Sophie Martin and Kate Sheperd in Keyham in August 2021 and the murder of Bobbi-Anne McLeod in November 2021. The Commission covers VAWG in all forms. It includes representatives from the Police, partner organisations, researchers and other members of the community from Plymouth.
The Commission has listened to the experiences and concerns of the people of Plymouth in relation to VAWG. This includes women and girls who have experienced violence. The Commission has also listened to the Police and partner organisations about how VAWG is being addressed in the city.
Recommendations about how Plymouth will reduce and prevent VAWG will be launched by the Commission in June 2022. Devon and Cornwall Police have also produced an Action Plan to reduce and prevent VAWG across Devon and Cornwall. It is important that the Police Action Plan is made relevant to the specific needs of Plymouth as highlighted by the VAWG Commission Recommendations.
This project aims to (1) understand what the Police, partner organisations and people who live in Plymouth think is most important to reduce and prevent VAWG in Plymouth, and (2) develop projects to tackle those specific areas.
This work will have three phases:
1. Identify the priorities of services in Plymouth by listening to a variety of organisations that work with victims and survivors of VAWG or support people who commit violent acts against women and girls. We will also listen to members of the public across Plymouth. These include women and girls, men and boys, women who are homeless, women who have experienced violence, women who are migrants and asylum seekers, women with disabilities, women with experience of sex work and men with a history of violence to women and/or girls. Once we have listened, we will work with people from those groups to decide between 4 and 6 priorities that should be taken forward to the next stage of the project.
2. Map work that is and isn't already happening in Plymouth: We will again listen to organisations and public groups to understand what is happening in Plymouth to help prevent or reduce VAWG. We will take the priorities agreed in the previous phase and map where services in Plymouth are providing support. We will also identify gaps in what people in Plymouth think they need to prevent or reduce VAWG. From this we will work with organisations and the public to identify important questions that could be answered by research.
3. Develop priority project teams: We will bring together teams of Police, partner organisations and members of the public together with researchers to develop projects to answer the research questions. We will support teams to write project proposals and either work on smaller projects or apply for funding to work on larger projects.
We will present the work of the project through a variety of events in locations across the city and to a range of audiences to promote the impact of the work.
Organisations
- University of Plymouth (Lead Research Organisation)
- Plymouth City Council (Collaboration, Project Partner)
- University of Exeter (Collaboration)
- Cornwall Partnership NHS Fdn Trust (Project Partner)
- Safer Plymouth (Project Partner)
- Devon & Cornwall Police (Project Partner)
- Plymouth DASV Partnership (Project Partner)
- AHIMSA (Project Partner)
- Plymouth VAWG Commission (Project Partner)
| Description | Seven research priorities were identified using nominal group technique with eight public groups and five partner organisation groups. These priorities are listed below, along with the number of groups consulted that voted for the theme in their top three priorities: 1. Preventing violence against women and girls (VAWG) through education (12 groups) 2. Changing culture: everyday language and behaviour about women (11 groups) 3. Supporting people to report to someone if they want to (10 groups) 4. Creating safe public spaces (9 groups) 5. Supporting women and girls with lived experience (9 groups) 6. Supporting people to feel safe in their homes (8 groups) 7. Working with men who cause harm (5 groups) These priorities were taken forward to the mapping phase, in which we engaged with a range of public groups and members of the study's knowledge exchange group. These identified service provision that is needed in Plymouth to address the identified priorities, either because there are gaps in provision or what already exists needs to be offered on a more consistent basis. Each of the following examples potentially addresses more than one priority: 1. Education about healthy relationships - from an early age (primary school) and extending into adulthood (e.g., workplace prison), including boys/men and refugees or asylum seekers, to include detecting the signs of VAWG and understanding consequences. 2. Safe public spaces and people - including infrastructure such as public transport, lighting and CCTV but also the ability to contact people and get a quick response (.g., help points, police). 3. 'Softer support' - non-clinical opportunities for men or women to talk to others about their feelings and experiences (group, one-to-one), for instance covering relationships and mental health. To include peer support for women with lived experience of VAWG. 4. Advertising and signposting - better information about what services are already available (which is considerable if patchy). |
| Exploitation Route | There are opportunities for researchers from this team or beyond to collaborate with services providers in Plymouth to co-develop research projects based on the findings of this study. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy Creative Economy Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) Education Environment Healthcare Leisure Activities including Sports Recreation and Tourism Government Democracy and Justice Transport |
| Description | Evaluation of Coordinated Community Response to Violence Against Women and Girls in Plymouth |
| Organisation | Plymouth City Council |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | Developing a service evaluation framework |
| Collaborator Contribution | Leading the intervention delivery |
| Impact | Disciplines involved Psychology and Public health |
| Start Year | 2024 |
| Description | Think Again feasibility trial steering group |
| Organisation | University of Exeter |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Chair of feasibility trial steering group (Lynne Callaghan) |
| Collaborator Contribution | Leading the feasibility trial |
| Impact | Discplines involved include Psychology and Nursing |
| Start Year | 2024 |
| Description | Presentation at ESRC Research Showcase: Tacking violence against women and girls |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Invited to present the study at a showcase of research projects successful within the commissioned call, held at the Vulnerability and Policing Futures Centre, Leeds. Audience of researcher, practitioners, third sector organisations, students and commissioners. Generated increased interest in the project and links to other projects within the identified research priorities from the project's prioritisation phase. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Presentation of the project to the Plymouth VAWG Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Presentation of the project to generate interest at the first Plymouth VAWG conference which was attended by 200 delegates in Plymouth's Guildhall. Presentation sparked interest in involvement in the Plymouth VAWG Research Knowledge Exchange Group and developing an evidence base and VAWG research and evaluation in Plymouth. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Presentation to the Plymouth Diversity Business Incubator |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Presentation about the project in order to foster interest and representation from groups that are representative of refugees and asylum seekers in Plymouth. The presentation sparked interesting debate and questions and attendees showed their interest in the project and offered ways in which they wanted to become involved. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Project stand at Plymouth MANCulture Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | We presented the work of the project at the Plymouth MANCulture conference at a stall the aimed to generate discussion and debate under the research priorities identified during the prioritisation phase of the study. The team spoke to approximately 6o people during the day and raised awareness of the research priorities that were being taken forward by the Knowledge Exchange Group, awareness of the Knowledge Exchange Group itself and how to join and supported discussion about what people in Plymouth needed under each of the identified research priorities to prevent and tackle violence against women nd girls. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Strengthening partnerships through research to tackle male violence against women and girls in Plymouth Launch event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Up to 100 people from across the South West attended the project launch in Plymouth Guildhall in November 2022 hosted and funded through the University of Plymouth's ESRC Festival of Social Science. A panel consisting of lead professionals including police officers, CEOs and practitioners from VAWG related third sector organisations in Plymouth and a leading Plymouth City Councillor who chaired the Plymouth VAWG Commission provided their views and increased interest in the need for VAWG research and evaluation in Plymouth. 40 attendees provided their details to be included in the project Knowledge Exchange Group and attended subsequent meetings |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Violence Against Women and Girls Research Plymouth Knowledge Exchange group |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | The Plymouth VAWG Knowledge Exchange Group was established in December 2022. Its purpose is to advise on issues of importance and drive the project to assist in achieving project milestones as well as facilitating long-term sustainable collaborations focused on developing research and evaluation to tackle VAWG in Plymouth. It is co-chaired by the Principal Investigator and the Plymouth VAWG Lead. The aims of the group are to: • Facilitate partner organisation engagement and networking in relation to tackling VAWG in Plymouth • Support and guide the research team to conduct research and engagement activities as part of the current project • Develop and build relationships between the police, partner organisations and academic researchers • Listen to the perspectives and priorities of the public, police and partner organisations in relation to VAWG • Co-design activities, including but not limited to, research and evaluation projects to tackle VAWG in Plymouth • Be advocates for the project and support dissemination of project findings and outputs |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022,2023 |