Feeling unsafe as a woman is not a new experience. Many of us wish it was – many of us wish it was never a thing at all – but the fact is that feeling frightened as women is a societal norm. It’s that way because it’s been accepted for so long.
But perhaps, now, we’re seeing the tide change towards a world where being afraid does not have to be an unfortunate, unavoidable by-product of being a woman. We can achieve that change if we all, every one of us, step up to eradicate violence against women and ensure their safety.
It starts with addressing the situation
In March 2021 we saw the impact Sarah Everard’s murder had on the people we work with and those we work for. We heard conversations take place about women’s safety or, perhaps more appropriately, the disparity between the safety of women and the safety of their male peers.
We knew then that we couldn’t just have these conversations – though they were a good starting point – but that we had to dive deeper to address and fully understand how the people we work with feel about women’s safety. So Abri launched Safer Streets, a piece of independent research designed to give us a better understanding of our colleagues experiences around violence, harassment and safety.
What we found is the foundation for what we’re doing next: rolling out an action plan that will see us step up to play our part in enhancing women’s safety with an ultimate aim of eradicating the violence they experience.
This isn’t about them and us
Right now we’re seeing a conversation take place that usually begins with ‘this isn’t all men’. And it’s a statement that is both correct and incorrect. It’s indeed not true that every man is responsible for the harassment and violence a woman will experience, but it is true that every man can play a role in eradicating ‘banter’ and calling out harassment. We can all play that role if we choose to.
This is about a culture change, one that leads us towards a society based on equality where men and women both feel safe when they are walking home alone. Ultimately, each one of us is empowered to choose whether or not to be a part of, and embed, that culture change. We are taking that seriously and will be introducing male allies in our organisation who will encourage others to be active in ensuring women’s safety.
Let’s educate the people around us
Change comes from awareness and understanding. When we’re better equipped with knowledge, we’re better able to understand the world from another person’s perspective. So we have to get educating the boys and men in our communities to ensure they fully gauge the situation around women’s safety and what their role is in ensuring it. And with our partners we’ll be launching an education programme to do just that.
Where we go from here
The murder of Sabina Nessa has again confirmed what we already thought to be true: women are not safe yet. But we believe they can be. That is why we did our research and it’s why we’re now working with our customers and our colleagues to improve women’s safety.
We’re doing this because, with 80,000 customers and 1,500 colleagues, we simply must. We’re doing this because it’s the right thing. And if you’re a housing provider, you should be doing it too.
- Caroline Moore, Chief Financial Officer
