Gang violence: Young women protected by government-backed project
17 Apr 2014 02:39 PM
Minister visits Safer
London Foundation to see how lives of hundreds of vulnerable girls and young
women are being transformed.
The lives of hundreds of
vulnerable girls and young women affected by gang violence are being
transformed by a Home Office-backed project.
During the past 12 months, the
Safer London Foundation has supported around 500 young women in London at risk
of or involved in gang activity as part of its Empower
programme.
Four Young People’s
Advocates, who cover the boroughs of Hackney, Haringey, Islington, Enfield,
Camden and Croydon, provide direct support to young women who have been victims
or are at risk of sexual violence by gangs.
The advocates are funded by the
Home Office, which is investing £360,000 in the Safer London Foundation
as part of £1.2 million across the country over 3 years. The investment
is part of the government’s Ending Gang and Youth
Violence programme.
Sexual abuse
Crime Prevention Minister Norman
Baker visited the Safer
London Foundation to see the success of the Empower project and speak
to people involved in this work.
Crime Prevention Minister Norman
Baker said:
The coalition government is
leading ground breaking work with partners to support women and girls whose
lives have been blighted by violence and sexual abuse at the hands of
gangs.
The Safer London
Foundation’s Empower programme is a powerful force for good, helping
those at risk move away from gang activity.
These issues are being tackled
for the first time and, while there is much still to do, schemes such as
Empower are producing life-changing results for many young
women.
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Gangs
On a visit to the
charity’s headquarters in Southwark yesterday (Wednesday, 16 April), the
minister met one of the Young People’s Advocates employed by the Safer
London Foundation.
He also spoke to young women
with a history of gang association about how Safer London had supported
them.
Safer London Foundation Chief
Executive Rena Sodhi said:
We are delighted that Norman
Baker MP has taken time to visit our Empower project. Here at the Safer London
Foundation we are immensely grateful to the Home Office for funding this vital
work for young people in the capital.
Projects such as ours need to be
available for the many young women with complex needs who require specialist
support.
The work the Young
People’s Advocates are doing is making a huge difference for many young
people across London who are in dire need of our support.