South Somerset District Council takes action to reduce and eliminate male violence against women and
Released On 5th Jan 2022
South Somerset District Council is aiming to create a taskforce to help tackle misogyny and reduce male violence against women and girls.
It comes after SSDC councillors supported a motion which was brought forward by Councillors Sarah Dyke and Nicola Clark on the 16 September 2021.
Councillors Sarah Dyke and Nicola Clark said; " We are pleased to be initiating much-needed reforms which will assists in building a district which is free from misogny and violence against women".
The Motion highlighted 15 proposals which are needed to make a difference in South Somerset.
Among these proposals is a plan to build a taskforce which ensures that the voices of women and girls are heard, and it is SSDC's goal that this working group will include all of its female councillors in addition to interested residents and other elected members, regardless of gender, who are allied to the cause.
Information regarding how residents across South Somerset can become a part of the taskforce will be released in the coming months via South Somerset District Council's social media platforms, its website and in Town and Parish newsletters, among other communications channels.
SSDC recognises that existing national campaigns like Our Streets Now (www.ourstreetsnow.org) are doing great work to demand an end to public sexual harassment, an endemic problem that affects 97% of women aged 18 to 24 across the UK (YouGov), and SSDC stands in solidarity with these campaigns.
As such, SSDC encourages residents and Members to sign Our Streets Now petition (www.change.org/p/make-public-sexual-harassment-a-criminal-offence-in-the-uk). which aims to make public sexual harassment a crime in the UK.
The Chairman of the Council, Councillor Paul Maxwell said, "I support the motion put forward by Councillors Sarah Dyke and Nicola Clark. I deplore any violence towards women and girls and completely support the proposals in the motion to end misogyny in the district".
