Covid-19: One year on

A joint statement from Women’s Aid, Imkaan, Women’s Aid Federation Northern Ireland, End Violence Against Women, Welsh Women’s Aid and Scottish Women’s Aid

 

A year ago, our organisations came together to issue an urgent call to action to protect women and children experiencing domestic abuse, sexual violence, forced marriage, so called ‘honor based’ violence, child sexual abuse, FGM, online abuse and other forms of violence against women and girls (VAWG). We knew the pandemic would have devastating impacts on the lives of the women and children we support, and the frontline specialist services across the UK that we represent.

Covid-19 has affected us all, but it has not affected us all equally. It was clear from the outset that lockdown measures would exacerbate women and girls’ experiences of violence and abuse, and shut down routes to safety and support. Over the past year this has been borne out in the huge increases in demand our sector has witnessed, the increasing complexity of need from those we support, the strains that frontline workers have faced in responding to survivors in trauma, the new ways that perpetrators are using Covid-19 as tools for abuse and control, and of course the tragic murders of women and children that we remember today.

The pandemic – and its health, social and economic effects – have had disproportionate impact on communities facing oppression. Before Covid-19 women and girls experiencing structural inequality – including Black and minoritised women, women with insecure immigration status, disabled women and LGBT+ survivors – faced the most severe barriers to getting the help they need. Urgent and coordinated action was required to fix glaring gaps in protection and support – particularly for migrant women experiencing VAWG – but the UK government has failed to act.

We celebrate the huge strength of our sector in supporting survivors during an unprecedented challenge; frontline staff have radically redesigned their services, under immense pressure, so they could continue to save lives, provide specialist support and hope to women and children, and ensure that their rights are protected and voices heard. But we remain seriously concerned about the lack of meaningful partnership working between the UK government, devolved administrations in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and our specialist sector. This has limited the ability of all nations and regions to meet the needs of women and girls and the life-saving specialist services that support them.

Read the full statement here

Scroll to Top