To aid vulnerable women and girls at greater risk of violence and abuse, the Mayor has announced the release of £4 million in funding on February 9.
With the rising risk of violence and abuse for women and children due to the cost-of-living crisis, Mayor Sadiq Khan is providing vital VAWG services with a new £1 million in funding in support.
Khan is also committing £3 million to continue his support for local grassroots. This funding is expected to help minority Black organisations, disabled and neuro-diverse people, LGBTQ+, older people and women who have no direct access to public funds or for whom “mainstream provision is not always appropriate or safely accessible.”
Khan said: “There is an epidemic of violence against women and girls across the UK which needs to be treated with the utmost urgency – not just by the police and partners, but our society as a whole.
“We know the cost of living crisis is disproportionately impacting women, particularly those whose lives are impacted by abuse and inequality, and the organisations that are supporting them.
“That’s why I’m proposing a new £4 million investment that will help women and girls of all backgrounds to access the help and support they need.
“This action is part of my refreshed VAWG strategy which is championing a public health approach to ending the violence and misogyny too many women face on a daily basis and building a safer London for everyone.”
Along with Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime, Sophie Linden and other City Hall staff, Khan participated in the L’Oréal Paris Stand Up Against Street Harassment bystander training course. The 60-minute course, available online and in-person, was delivered by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust and teaches how to tackle street harassment.
Talking about the course, Khan said: “I would encourage everyone, particularly men, to take part in L’Oreal Paris’ excellent Stand Up Against Street Harassment training delivered by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust and learn how you can be an active bystander and safely intervene if you see a woman being harassed in a public place.”
The £4 million funding is in addition to the £105 million investment the Mayor has overseen in tackling violence against women and girls since he was elected in 2016, which includes investing over £45 million in specialist support for VAWG victims and survivors.
