Youth workers from 15 organisations across the force area have successfully completed training to help reduce the risk of young people becoming victims of sexual violence.
Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Police and Crime Commissioner Rupert Matthews has allocated funding worth £75k towards boosting the knowledge and skills of their volunteers and staff ready for the delivery of a bespoke educational package teaching young people about acceptable behaviours.
The PCC invited community-based groups, grassroots organisations, charities and sports and youth clubs to apply for a grant to cover the cost of the training package, support and guidance. A total of 23 organisations have successfully applied for grants worth just over £3,250 each, and the first cohort of 15 have already completed training. A further eight organisations are now ready to embark on the programme.
As the nation marks No More Week 2025 – an international awareness week aimed at raising awareness of domestic abuse and sexual violence – the Commissioner is shining a spotlight on the work he is undertaking with partners to tackle violence against women and girls (VAWG).
Rupert Matthews said: “It vital that we tackle VAWG crimes from every angle and the more we can invest in prevention, the more young people we will protect from becoming future victims or perpetrators.
“Local organisations have grasped this wonderful opportunity to train their staff and support our wider work to protect young people from sexual violence with opened arms, and many are now ready to put the new skills and approaches they’ve learned into practice with the young people they work with. The feedback received from the training cohort has been overwhelmingly positive.
“The ‘prevention’ ethos knits together all the key priorities in my Police and Crime Plan and I am pleased so many agencies share our approach. By challenging the attitudes and behaviour that underpin violence, and raising awareness of unacceptable behaviour, we will not only help young people make safer choices but will also empower them to be part of the solution.”
The training, which involves input from several agencies, covers a range of key themes including consent, healthy relationships, personal space and boundaries, sexual violence definitions and the law, grooming, bystanding and more complex issues with a societal focus around VAWG.
The aim is to ensure each organisation is well-prepared for difficult conversations around sexual violence and that staff are armed with the tools and understanding to approach these topics safely and appropriately.
The organisations that have already completed training are preparing to integrate the sexual violence educational packages into their curriculum. The aim is for the packages to be delivered with every young person they engage with, delivering maximum value from the investment.
Sav Vaid, Director, Go-Getta CIC, said: “As a frontline youth work organisation, delivering support to young people directly, the opportunity to up-skill around VAWG themes has been highly valuable to us.
“More and more, we are finding the need to counteract the influence and impact of myths perpetuated by social media. We found the training around ‘Misogyny and Masculinity’ particularly interesting; it left us with some ideas for tangible activity we can deliver with the boys/young men we provide mentoring to, helping us to feel more confident in challenging unhelpful and unhealthy attitudes.”
Mezmin Malida, Community Leader and Community Champion, Memon Association Leicester Ltd, added: “The Graham Goulden training was incredibly insightful and helped me deepen my understanding of violence against women and girls. I learned about the different forms of abuse, how it affects people's behavior, and the crucial role a bystander can play in making a difference.
“A huge thank you to the Police and Crime Commissioner for giving us the opportunity to run workshops with young people on this important topic. Memon Association Leicester Ltd is truly grateful for this chance to educate and empower our community.”
The PCC is working with the Violence Reduction Network (VRN) and other criminal justice and public sector agencies to tackle VAWG with a joint VAWG Strategy 2024-2026 well underway.
The Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland PCC secured the funding for this training package from the fifth round of the Home Office’s Safer Streets Fund, designating part of the grant towards the VAWG initiatives.
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Posted on Tuesday 4th March 2025