West Mids Victims Commissioner: "Women will only be safe if we educate next generation of boys"
Nicki Brennan wants to extend classes for boys about attitudes towards women to all schools
The Victims Commissioner for the West Midlands said sessions taking place in 60 schools across the West Midlands - aimed at encouraging boys to have open conversations about attitudes towards women and girls - should be compulsory in all schools.
Nicki Brennan said "60 schools isn't enough. In my opinion it should be compulsory. We need to look at how sex education and relationship education is delivered in our schools."
Last year The Police and Crime Commissioner secured more than £1 million in additional funding to build on education programmes and public-facing campaigns aimed at preventing male violence against women and girls.
As part of the Home Office’s Safer Streets Fund, the PCC was granted £458,545 to support the next steps across the West Midlands.
He also granted Wolverhampton Council £365,667 and Sandwell Council £227,100 for work on the project, taking the total value of the funding to the West Midlands to £1,051,312.
A core focus of the region’s bid was on education following the positive response to the pilot scheme of #timetotalk – a programme that was originally delivered in 12 schools across the region by Safer Together. The programme focuses on boys in schools, helping them to understand violence against women and girls and learn how to be an ally in preventing it, and calling it out when they see it.
The additional funding then saw the programme rolled out to 60 schools in the region alongside the development of new materials and resources.
Now the Victims Commissioner has said the courses ought to be rolled out in all schools.
The West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster, said:
“We wanted to put men and boys at the forefront of essential conversations about violence against women and girls. The feedback from the #timetotalk pilot was overwhelmingly positive and we’re pleased to have the chance to take it to the next level. Education can be the ‘silver bullet’. It allows us to confront the root causes of violence and break these dangerous cycles of behaviour.”
The recipients of the Safer Streets Fund Round Four will fund projects until September 2023.