Agenda Alliance

Our hearts go out to the family of Kay Melhuish, and all who loved her. The circumstances of her death are one of the starkest recent examples of why prison must never be seen as 'a space of safety'. Kay was taken into prison on remand despite a letter from her psychiatrist saying prison would endanger her life. She died by suicide at just 36 years old, less than 3 weeks after arriving, after a litany of failures to provide her with adequate care and protection. It is positive to see the Ministry of Justice UK state the new government will be ending the designation of prison as a place of safety in this report. But the government can, and must, do better. Too often, women just like Kay are unable to access the support they need at the right time, experiencing a cycle of harm which increases the severity of their needs until they reach crisis point. Too many women are dying as a result. The government must urgently invest in specialist, trauma-informed, gender-specific services, such as women's centres. The evidence shows they work. Only then will all women have the 'space of safety' they deserve. #womeninprison #womenwithmultipleunmetneeds #cycleofharm #womenscentres

This year’s theme for Black History Month, ‘Reclaiming Narratives’, highlights the importance of stories and the power they hold for understanding ourselves and others. It speaks to the negative impact of stories which “misrepresent, oversimplify, or entirely overlook the rich and diverse experiences” of Black communities. As an organisation committed to amplifying the direct voices and experiences of women and girls – especially those consistently overlooked or unheard – we wanted to highlight three films created or shared across our membership that have offered a space for Black women and girls to shape, create, and share their own stories. Featuring Milk Honey Bees, Clean Break Theatre Company, and Aliyah Ali of The Daddyless Daughters Project CIC https://buff.ly/3NJy5CA

"Now is the time for bold, transformative change" Through my role with the National Women's Justice Coalition I've had the opportunity to work with and represent 26 different women's organisations, delivering services from across England and Wales to women and girls in contact with the CJS. And NWJC partners and allies have collectively been calling for policy reform and sentencing reviews for years, for the very reasons Rokaiya summarises in this blog👇 It's not rocket science Ministry of Justice UK! Reducing the number of women in prison is a solution to the prison crisis, to effective public spending and to disrupting the cycles of trauma and harm that lead women and girls into contact with the justice system in the first place. #weareNWJC #NWJC #WomensJustice

📢 New Report Alert! 🏠    Hibiscus has just released a report on the housing challenges faced by Black and minoritised migrant women in the UK. "The Unsafe, insecure: barriers to safe housing for Black and minoritised migrant women and their children" report reveals that having unsafe and insecure housing correlates with an increased likelihood of mental health struggles and experiences of violence and exploitation for these women. The report draws on focus groups with Hibiscus’ frontline practitioners and service users, data from our casework and desk-based research.      Key insights include:    ➡ Structural barriers stemming from the hostile environment policy push women to live in unsafe, overcrowded, and unsuitable housing conditions.  ➡ There is an urgent need for intersectional, gender-informed, trauma-responsive housing policies.    With this report, we call for radical reforms, including abolishing the hostile environment policy and investing in decent, family-friendly social housing.     Read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/gjuAFiis

We love this Navrup Kaur - thank you for bigging up our amazing co-chair Tanya Tracey (MBACP)! 🤩

Important but deeply sad new research from Museum of Homelessness, showing a 12% increase the number of people dying while homeless from last year's study. Their report includes some key findings relevant to our own on women and multiple disadvantage: 1️⃣ The North East had the second highest rate of reported deaths in England, behind only London, demonstrating the continued and stark impact of regional inequality on life expectancy. 2️⃣ Their findings show that women were more likely to die by suicide while homeless than men (13%, compared to 10%), and at an average age of just 30 years old. This indicates the urgent need for young women facing homelessness to have access to services which can offer trauma-informed mental health support, and be responsive to their specific, gendered, experiences. https://lnkd.in/eHs74Mxn

There's less than 24 hours to go until our Big Give campaign closes, and we've raised an incredible £10,000+ to support our work with our Women's Advisory Network (WAN). This platform really matters to the women who are part of it. Thank you so much for believing in and backing them this week. We're blown away by your generosity and so excited for what they will do together with your support. 🔥 If you still want to give, our campaign will remain open until 12pm tomorrow, but donations will no longer be doubled ❤️ https://lnkd.in/gJppybvr #wgmf #biggive #matchfund #womenandgirls #womeninpower

We’ve reached our Big Give target!!! Thank you so much to everyone who has donated to the campaign in support of our Advisory Network. Every £ that’s been given will make such an impact and we’re so excited for what it will mean for their work together. Our campaign will remain live until 12pm on Thursday for anyone who is still keen to give, but these will no longer be doubled ❤️ https://lnkd.in/gJppybvr #wgmf #biggive #womenandgirls

Do you believe all women deserve the chance to be heard? Then please spare two minutes of your time to listen to the women we work with, and hear about our Women's Advisory Network in their own words ✨ We've got THREE DAYS left to raise £5,000 for them this week - and all donations will be doubled thanks to the Big Give Women and Girls Match Fund. Anything you spare will support them to make changes for future generations: https://buff.ly/482k6S1

Women with lived experience of adversity have the answers to so many of the challenges they face, but are so rarely included when services intended to support them are designed. Our Women's Advisory Network gives women like Nici a powerful platform to be heard, by services, frontline practitioners, local decision-makers, and national government alike. If you'd like to make sure their voices continue to be heard by those in power, please consider donating to our Big Give campaign today - anything you can spare will be doubled, at no extra cost to you: https://buff.ly/4ey3BiQ #wgmf #womenandgirls #biggive #matchfund #womenwithmultipleunmetneeds #womeninpower #fundraising #womeninpower