A new training programme is currently being rolled out to 15 of Warrington’s high schools and colleges to tackle sexual violence and in particular violence against women and girls.
Delivered and funded as part of the Safer Streets Warrington initiative, the programme will cover sexual misconduct, consent, and bystander awareness to young people in Key Stages 3, 4 and 5 and will be delivered as part of the RSE curriculum.
The overall aim of the programme is to equip teachers within schools and colleges to help enable pupils to recognise and respond appropriately and safely to unwanted behaviours.
John Dwyer, Police and Crime Commissioner for Cheshire, said: “This educational programme is key in helping to change young people’s attitudes towards unacceptable behaviour. The knowledge shared by LimeCulture and Purple Leaf will be invaluable and empowers young people in Warrington to challenge any unacceptable behaviour they see.”
LimeCulture and Purple Leaf have been commissioned to develop the training programmes and support the delivery of training to teachers. LimeCulture’s training is focussed on equipping teachers to deliver Enhanced Sexual Misconduct Education (ESME) training programmes to young people in Key Stages, 3, 4 and 5 and delivering Sexual Misconduct Liaison Officer (SMLO) Model to two schools, to train a cadre of staff to respond to sexual misconduct.
Stephanie Reardon, CEO at LimeCulture, said: “LimeCulture is a national sexual violence and safeguarding organisation based in the UK. We work with frontline professionals, and their organisations, to improve the response to sexual violence and safeguarding, through our range of training and development initiatives, research, and specialised consultancy services.
“We are delighted to be involved in the Safer Streets Programme to provide specialist training to more than 100 teachers across Warrington to better equip them to deliver enhanced sexual misconduct education to young people in Key Stage 3, 4 & 5 to empower them to stay safe as they develop into young adults.
“We will also be working closely with two schools in Warrington to assist them to embed the Sexual Misconduct Liaison Officer (SMLO) Model which will allow them to provide a whole school response to sexual misconduct by creating a cadre of specially trained staff who are able to support any children/young people who are involved in cases of sexual misconduct.”
Alongside the training provided by Lime Culture, Purple Leaf has created a Bystander Intervention training to be rolled out to teachers, students, and people working in the nighttime economy.
Kerrie Best, Head of Operations at Purple Leaf said: “Purple Leaf is the preventative arm of West Mercia Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre with over 30 years of sexual violence experience. Working with Cheshire Police, we have created an eLearning and complementary resource that trained trainers will deliver out in the community.
“It focuses on four learning outcomes; understanding what is meant by sexual harassment, recognising what predatory behaviours might look like, knowing how to intervene safely and effectively as an active bystander, and being able to refer and signpost people to the right service.
“Our resources are based on our practitioner experience of supporting survivors of sexual violence and abuse alongside academic research into bystander interventions and evidenced best practice. We often see victims of sexual crime being blamed for their experience rather than supported. The approach Warrington has taken to this work shows their commitment to enabling their community to recognise sexual harassment in all its forms, to not victim blame, or minimise or collude with sexually inappropriate behaviours and to ensure that victims are supported.”
For more information on Safer Streets Warrington, visit http://saferstreetswarrington.com/
