The Aims of Bristol Reclaim the Night
We want Bristol Reclaim the Night to be more than just an annual expression of protest. In consultation with local organisation three actions have been proposed to make a lasting difference in our city and throughout the UK. Please click through to see how you can help us achieve these aims.
1. Help victim support organisations Bristol needs increased and sustained funding for services which support survivors of sexual violence. Providers of counselling and support services in our city have to scrape around for funding to stay open. Women can wait months to see a counsellor and men and ethnic minority groups can find it very difficult to locate and access resources. These essential services deserve proper funding so they can concentrate on helping more people in Bristol.
The Safer Bristol Partnership has secured funding for the new Rape Crisis centre. We want this essential service to have sustainable funding to continue in Bristol for years to come. Click here to find out more.
2. Educate on safety and respect to prevent sexual violence
We need to bust myths and misunderstandings about sexual assault which create a tendency to blame victims, exclude male victims and excuse behaviour such as verbal abuse and domestic violence. This is a human rights issue and needs to be understood in the wider context of abuses of the right to safety, freedom and equality. We need proper rape prevention education made available in schools and communities in our city to encourage more respectful behaviour and attitudes.
We want to support teachers and schools in Bristol to be able to provide full teaching of Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education (PSHEE) in secondary schools to raise awareness of young people about domestic violence through curriculum activities. Click here to find out more.
3. Improve justice systems and increase rape convictions In Avon and Somerset only 4.2% of rape cases end in a conviction. The national average is only 5.7% and declining. In no other crime is the victim subject to so much scrutiny at trial, where the most likely defence is that the victim consented to the crime. The Home Office recognises a “justice gap” in the reporting and conviction of rapes and we want a review of judicial systems and education of judges to address this failure in our courts. Click here to find out more.
We want Bristol Reclaim the Night to be more than just an annual expression of protest. In consultation with local organisation three actions have been proposed to make a lasting difference in our city and throughout the UK. Please click through to see how you can help us achieve these aims.
1. Help victim support organisations Bristol needs increased and sustained funding for services which support survivors of sexual violence. Providers of counselling and support services in our city have to scrape around for funding to stay open. Women can wait months to see a counsellor and men and ethnic minority groups can find it very difficult to locate and access resources. These essential services deserve proper funding so they can concentrate on helping more people in Bristol.
The Safer Bristol Partnership has secured funding for the new Rape Crisis centre. We want this essential service to have sustainable funding to continue in Bristol for years to come. Click here to find out more.
2. Educate on safety and respect to prevent sexual violence
We need to bust myths and misunderstandings about sexual assault which create a tendency to blame victims, exclude male victims and excuse behaviour such as verbal abuse and domestic violence. This is a human rights issue and needs to be understood in the wider context of abuses of the right to safety, freedom and equality. We need proper rape prevention education made available in schools and communities in our city to encourage more respectful behaviour and attitudes.
We want to support teachers and schools in Bristol to be able to provide full teaching of Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education (PSHEE) in secondary schools to raise awareness of young people about domestic violence through curriculum activities. Click here to find out more.
3. Improve justice systems and increase rape convictions In Avon and Somerset only 4.2% of rape cases end in a conviction. The national average is only 5.7% and declining. In no other crime is the victim subject to so much scrutiny at trial, where the most likely defence is that the victim consented to the crime. The Home Office recognises a “justice gap” in the reporting and conviction of rapes and we want a review of judicial systems and education of judges to address this failure in our courts. Click here to find out more.
Local Organisations
It is important to us that Bristol RTN represents organisations in Bristol. We are in touch with local women’s group and victim support organisations to inform the three aims of Bristol Reclaim the Night. We use RTN to raise the profiles of local organisations and add strength to their campaigns.
If you or your organisation has suggestions to bring to RTN, or if we can promote your campaign, please get in touch so that we can work together.
Thank you to the local branches of Amnesty International, Fawcett Society, Victim Support, to One25, the Women's forum, the Sexual Assualt referral Centre and others for their statements of support for Reclaim the Night. You can read these here.
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