London's Violence Reduction Unit

🙌 We work in partnership to fund and promote opportunities for girls and young women. 📽️ To round of #16Days, we took young women to Arsenal F.C to take part in sport and to work with Abianda, Advance and Jigsaw GC, to learn about healthy relationships. Watch ⬇️

📻 Our Director Lib Peck and Tsion Martins of Bridge The Gap Studios joined Eddie Nestor on BBC Radio London to talk about our new programme to support fathers. 🎙️ How does that contribute to tackling violence? 🎙️What evidence is there about the impact of absent fathers? Listen to the discussion and why we're working to support fathers by providing networks, therapy and promoting effective co-parenting. 👂 in from 2.45 https://lnkd.in/eJMxYZVn

🙌 Families are often the foundation for a young person's development. 📉 Yet an absent father can have a profound impact on a young person's life. Data shows that 60% of boys with fathers in custody are likely to go on to offend. 🚸 That's why we're funding community organisations in eight London boroughs to support effective co-parenting, deliver ongoing therapeutic support and provide peer networks to help fathers achieve consistent access to their children. 📺 BBC London went to meet some of the fathers and activities put on to help bring them together.

🧡Fathers play a crucial role in children's lives. 🫶We're working to break cycles of crime, trauma, and family breakdown in order to strengthen families. 🤝With support from Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, we've invested in grassroots organisations to provide targeted support for fathers. Studies show that fathers play a critical role in supporting children’s development and their academic success, helping with problem solving, critical thinking, and creativity. Following work the VRU has done over the last four years through its Parent Carer Champion Network, we identified gaps in support and provision for fathers, as well as a lack of engagement with support services. The VRU has now invested in two consortiums to deliver targeted therapeutic support and assistance in supporting fathers to gain access to their children. Kelly Reid BSc (Hons) 📖Read more about it 👇 https://t.co/RfG4FSz6O2

🧡 We are committed to working in partnership to open doors and provide access to opportunities for girls and young women. ⚽ This #16Days we teamed up with Arsenal F.C Abianda Advance to put on workshops for young women and male allies on healthy relationships and sport opportunities.

London's Inclusion Charter is our partnership approach to tackle rising suspensions, exclusions and persistent absenteeism. Yesterday, we held an Inclusive London event with Croydon Council, bringing together education leaders from across the city to share best practice. We heard from: ✅ youth workers and safeguarding specialists ✅Croydon schools about inclusive practices ✅A new partnership with London Virtual Schools, the VRU and Attachment Research Community You can find out more about the Charter, here: https://lnkd.in/euE4viEK

🧡 As part of the #16DaysOfActivism against violence against women and girls, we're sharing more about our programmes that are directly supporting women and girls across London. 🤝 Our Inclusive and Nurturing Schools programme aims to keep children safe, supported, and thriving in school, tackle exclusions, and ensure children and young people have healthy relationship behaviours and attitudes. This is done through an inclusive and nurturing approach, delivered by nurtureuk, and the development of healthy relationships, delivered by Tender Education and Arts. Workshops in primary schools focuses on: ✔️ Children's friendships ✔️ Emotions and peer pressure ✔️ Consent and the NSPCC PANTS rule ✔️ Self-esteem and empathy Secondary school workshops look at: ✔️ Intimate relationships ✔️ The impact of the online world on relationships ✔️ Different types of abuse that exist and the barriers of leaving relationships for victims 💡 Workshops are interactive, with opportunities to act out and create drama pieces around scripts created by Tender, allowing the children and young people to think about what they could do in those scenarios. Signposting to services, such as Childline, and to trusted adults in the school are incorporated into delivery to ensure that young people know where to go for support. #16Days

🏈 We brought together young women and girls along with male allies to get inspired by the National Football League (NFL). 📢 Our Director Lib Peck and Young People's Action Group member, Samira, led a panel discussion on #16DaysOfActivism and why women in sports is important. 🏆 Alongside a special thanksgiving dinner, our young people had the chance to see the Superbowl Vince Lombardy Trophy and watch the Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions game live.

🤝 We fund trained practitioners to work and provide consistent support for children and young people who have been impacted by domestic abuse. 💡 Our Bambu programme helps children and young people who have experienced domestic abuse in the home by parent/carers or in their own relationships. Practitioners advocate for the rights of children and young people to be respected, heard and protected, breaking the cycle of abuse, and creating safer families and communities. 👍 Children and young people are encouraged and supported to develop resilience skills and a deeper understanding of what domestic abuse is, it’s impact on their own childhood and what support and safety planning can be given to increase their safety and well-being. #16DaysOfActivism

💡 As we work to reduce violence across London, we need to bring knowledge, evidence and experience together to better define trauma-informed practice. That’s why we have launched the new ‘Trauma-Informed Practice Survey’, in collaboration with Dartington Service Design Lab. 📊 This survey (approx 15 mins) calls on professionals working in London’s healthcare, local authorities and the Metropolitan police, to share their knowledge on trauma-informed practices. 🙌 Our intention is to build a common language and portfolio of best practice, that can be shared cross-sector. This will ultimately help London move towards becoming a truly trauma-responsive city. ➡️ If you work across these areas in London, share your knowledge below: https://lnkd.in/e7AzNxqB