Violence Against Women and Girls
The Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence 2011 (Istanbul Convention) to which the UK government is signatory defines violence against women as follows:
“Violence against women is understood as a violation of human rights and a form of discrimination against women and shall mean all acts of gender-based violence that result in, or are likely to result in, physical, sexual, psychological or economic harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.”

The Government’s ‘Tackling Violence against Women and Girls’ strategy published in July 2021 sets out how the government plan to prevent these crimes, improve the experiences of victims and survivors, ensure perpetrators are brought to justice, and improve the way different organisations work together.
BVSC are working to develop a strategy in partnership with members of both voluntary and statutory services and survivors of VAWG to ensure a multi-agency approach and commitment to tackle this issue. The strategy and action plan will be reflective of the community it serves to ensure bespoke, tailored provision is provided. We are dedicated to achieving a place where all people can live, work, study and learn, feeling safe and supported from VAWG.
The Strategy will enable:
- All partners to be clear about our agreed priorities for the next x years and embed these within their own organisations and strategic plans, including joint plans.
- All residents to understand and feel able to contribute towards making Birmingham a safer and healthier place for all where violence against women and girls is not tolerated.
- Victim/survivors to feel supported to seek help and empowered to lead safe lives, free from abuse.
- Perpetrators to know that their behaviour will not be tolerated and where they can seek support for abusive behaviour