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[Trigger warning: This article includes references to violence against women, including FGM.]

More than 230 million women and girls have experienced female genital mutilation (FGM). As well as causing severe pain, FGM can result in long-term complications, including urinary problems and difficulties during childbirth. In many cases, FGM can make sex painful and significantly limit sexual pleasure.

FGM and child marriage often go hand-in-hand, and girls who are married before the age of 15 are almost 50% more likely to experience domestic abuse. Worldwide, one in five girls are married before they reach the age of 18.

While FGM and child marriage are illegal in the UK, hundreds of girls are still forced into marriage every year and the NHS has seen more than 37,600 women and girls who have experienced FGM in the past 10 years.

FORWARD

FORWARD (the Foundation for Women’s Health Research and Development) is a UK-based charity working to end violence against African women and girls. Executive Director Naana Otoo-Oyortey MBE explains, “We tackle multiple forms of violence against women and girls, particularly faith-based and ritual abuse. We’re looking at women who are affected by female genital mutilation, by child marriage and by domestic abuse. Some of the women have been trafficked; some are refugees or asylum seekers.”

The charity both supports survivors and works to prevent more women and girls from experiencing violence. Much of its work is in the community – engaging people about the dangers of FGM, educating professionals and ensuring that survivors are supported.

Naana says, “We want to ensure that women don’t perpetuate the abuse. With FGM in particular, women take a proactive role, with the false belief that they are protecting their children, so we want to make sure they don’t put their own daughters through it.”

Women who have undergone FGM are much more likely to experience problems during childbirth, but they often struggle to access expert healthcare in the UK.  Naana shares, “It’s important to ensure that women’s needs are identified early, pre-birth, especially as not all hospitals understand the needs of women who have gone through FGM. We support professionals to be able to respond culturally appropriately in ways that will meet women where they are.”

Hammersmith United Charities’ grant

Earlier this year, we provided FORWARD with a grant of £9,985 towards the training and supervision of Maternity Champions and Community Champions in Hammersmith.

Earlier this year, we provided FORWARD with a grant of £9,985 towards the training and supervision of Maternity Champions and Community Champions in Hammersmith. These Champions raise awareness in their community, signpost people to services, offer one-to-one support, deliver talks and coffee mornings, advocate for women with professionals, and help to identify women and girls at risk of violence.

Naana explains, “Community Champions are critical in building bridges between statutory professionals and communities. They provide much-needed peer-to-peer support on the ground. Because of their language skills, they are able to bond better with women and help them to access services.”

The Champions have lived experience and can engage with people in a way that outsiders cannot. As one Champion said, “You have to be very clever [as a Champion] with how to approach community members, how to convince them, how to change or replace the bad ideas or bad habits or cultures in their head; to replace it with the new one and how to convince them that this is the right one.”

The Champions themselves also benefit, as they gain skills and experience that can help them to find paid employment.

Watch this video to find out more about Champions:

Get involved

• If you’re a woman or girl and have been affected by violence, you can access support on FORWARD’s website, by emailing support@forwarduk.org.uk or by calling 0208 960 4000.
• FORWARD is celebrating its 40th anniversary and is aiming to raise £100,000 by the end of the year to support its work. If you’d like to make a donation, you can do so here.
• If you’re interested in training to become a Community or Maternity Champion for your own community, email forward@forwarduk.org.uk

Black boys and young men are far more likely to be murdered in London than their counterparts. In 2022, 71% of the teenagers murdered in London were Black boys. Black men also face systemic barriers to achieving top jobs. According to the Black Talent Charter, “Verbal skills and poor commercial judgement were cited as reasons black candidates dropped out of interview processes, with companies describing a lack of ‘polish’ that allows candidates to operate within professional corporate social codes. In turn, this view may favour specific accents, mannerisms and conversational skills.”

Due to his own experiences, Ademola Adeyeba had long recognised the challenges faced by Black boys and young men. Bullied throughout school due to his African accent and name, Ademola attempted suicide twice; by his late teens, he had a dim outlook on life, was struggling and making poor choices, which nearly led to him being stabbed.

Thankfully, Ademola was able to turn his life around, build a successful career in sales and business, and become one of the top trainers in an international business. As he explains, “I discovered this whole new world where you can be successful based on how you communicate, deal with rejection and deal with setbacks. It dawned on me that nobody ever told me any of this when I was growing up. I wasn’t taught this at school or in life, but I was able to learn it in the business space.

“I saw the 2011 Tottenham riots first hand. I saw lots of really angry young people who were just totally fed up, and I saw that lots of them had great potential. I thought, ‘What if this young person got the kind of opportunity that I had? What if we could give some of the training I’ve had to Black boys and young Black men?’

“I was also sick and tired of seeing in newspapers the faces of young Black boys whose lives had been taken. The final straw came in 2018, when my 11-year-old nephew was threatened by a 12-year-old while he was at school.”

1000 Black Boys

Ademola used his experiences to create 1000 Black Boys – a social enterprise committed to inspiring Black boys and young Black men to unleash their potential and to live a life of purpose. The CIC does this in several interconnected ways:

• Events
• Mentorship
• Family therapy
• A YouTube channel

A digital platform is also planned, in order to support parents and guardians to access local services.

Tackling negative perceptions

A key part of 1000 Black Boys’ mission is to counter the negative stereotypes that Black people face from the media, school and life in general.

Ademola says, “In the first session of our mentorship programme, we ask them about the perception that some people have of Black boys and young Black men. They come out with ‘I’m a rude boy, I’m a gangster. I’m a criminal. I don’t like maths, I hate school. I’m never going to amount to anything.’

“The media plays a massive role in that perception, but they’ve also been told the same in other environments. Many have been told by their teachers that they’re stupid and won’t amount to anything.

“So, we explore the fact that people who look like them are running businesses and contributing in phenomenal ways to the world. We start to break down the stereotypes and show these men and boys that they can choose to do incredible things.”

As one participant, Samuel, said, “It was really eye-opening. The information that Ade taught me personally and the other Black boys that were in the sessions was very empowering – something that you don’t really get at school … this organisation is really one of a kind, inspirational.”

1000 Black Boys regularly runs events focused on inspiration and empowerment. Ademola explains, “We bring in people who are doing brilliant things and have them share their story and their journey. These events are incredibly powerful and you can see them flick a switch in the young people. It gives them role models – proof that they can do great things.”

The CIC also holds events for parents who have lost a child to youth violence. Ademola says, “They’re dealing with the loss of a child, and they’re hearing things in the media that are not true, and they’re not able to say, ‘Hey, that’s not the case. This is what happened.’ So, we give them a platform to be heard and, where we can, we pay them as speakers.”

Hammersmith United Charities’ grant

We’re supported 1000 Black Boys with several grants; the latest is funding three of the Inspiration and Empowerment events at White City.

Ademola says, “It’s great to have a funder that really gets our mission and understands what we’re doing. Because of our name and what we do, some organisations don’t want to fund us, but HUC have been a great partner. In early 2024, they gave us the biggest grant that we’d ever had at the time. They’ve also helped us to meet other organisations within the local area.”

1000 Black Boys’ impact

The feedback from participants and parents has been overwhelmingly positive. As one boy who has been through the programme, Levi, says, “1000 Black Boys has really helped me to see the world in a different way … focus on the things that I want to achieve in life and how I can be successful and help other young Black boys who are trying to accomplish their goals.”

The CIC’s work also has an impact on the wider community. Ademola explains, “If we lose this young person, we all lose, but if this young person wins, we all win. Maybe the young person becomes the next tech billionaire, or an incredible chef or politician or business leader. When they get to realise their potential, they could employ thousands of people of different backgrounds and different races; that young person’s potential benefits everyone.”

Find out more

1000 Black Boys has various Mentorship Programmes and events planned; the best way to keep informed is by subscribing to its newsletter. You can also email hello@1000blackboys.com for more details.

Everyone is welcome to attend the events.

Support 1000 Black Boys

• Could your organisation benefit from diversity training or mentors and speakers who can inspire the next generation of Black leaders? Email hello@1000blackboys.com.
• The CIC is looking for a base or meeting space in Hammersmith, so if you know of anywhere up for rent that might be suitable, please contact Ademola.
• If you share the CIC’s vision, you can make a donation towards its fundraising campaign.
• If you would like to donate to or fund 1000 Black Boys in other ways, or if you know of other opportunities to collaborate or support the charity, please email hello@1000blackboys.com or visit 1000blackboys.com.

UNiTE to End Violence against Women is an annual campaign led by the UN. The campaign kicks off on 25th November – the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women – and runs until Human Rights Day on 10th December.

Most violence against women is committed by the woman’s husband or other intimate partner.  It happens in every country across the globe; 1.4 million women in the UK experience domestic abuse each year and, on average, one woman is killed by a male partner or ex-partner every week.

However, even more worrying are stats from the UK’s police chiefs – which point to more women affected by domestic abuse taking their own lives than were murdered by a partner or former partner. Yet there is very little awareness of or discussion around what is arguably a secondary and largely invisible impact on women.

That’s where organisations like Woman’s Trust come in. Set up almost 30 years ago, Woman’s Trust has an exclusive and specialist focus on providing free mental health care to address the trauma caused by domestic abuse and the effect this has on women in their daily lives – often going undiagnosed for years, sometimes even decades after the relationship has ended.

Woman’s Trust has received a number of grants from us since 2012. The London-based charity has supported tens of thousands of women with free therapy and counselling and has been a literal lifesaver for women at some of the most desperate times of their lives.

A client of Woman’s Trust shared, “My experience getting help and support from Woman’s Trust was invaluable. I was not in a good place and didn’t know that I was in an abusive relationship for all those years and what was abusive about it. When it’s psychological abuse, it’s very difficult to decipher. WT helped me to see things and to understand what was happening to me, which made me understand why I have been feeling so depressed for so many years.”

Rachel Prescott-Smith is Head of Fundraising at Woman’s Trust. She told us, ‘‘Domestic abuse still carries shame and stigma (which it shouldn’t) and as a result, many women don’t like to talk about it, and worryingly some don’t even recognise their experiences as abuse. Most people also don’t really consider the resulting trauma and mental health issues that experiencing domestic abuse can cause, even though one in two women’s suicide attempts are linked to their experiences of abuse. Raising awareness is so important, as it helps survivors know they are not alone, and that help is out there.”

According to Rachel, there are still many misconceptions around domestic abuse, from what it entails to how likely it is to happen and the way it affects survivors on a practical and emotional level. Many people don’t realise that the term ‘domestic abuse’ covers a wide range of abusive behaviour, from physical violence to economic control and psychological abuse.

Women who experience domestic abuse are twice as likely to experience depression as those who don’t, and it can take a long time to process the trauma – or even recognise that mental health challenges are caused by domestic abuse. Counselling is invaluable, but it’s difficult to access on the NHS and even more rare to get specialists who understand the unique ways in which survivors are affected, which is why charities like Woman’s Trust are so important.

Rachel shares, “If you’ve experienced domestic abuse and live in one of the areas that we work in, we can offer you up to 18 sessions with a counsellor. You’ll see the same counsellor, at the same time each week, so that you can build rapport and feel more comfortable. Sessions are completely confidential and can be online or face-to-face in a women-only setting.”

Get support

If you’re experiencing (or have experienced) domestic abuse, and you want to find out about counselling sessions in London, contact Woman’s Trust on:

• 020 7034 0303
• Email: office@womanstrust.org.uk

(Office hours: Mon-Fri, 9:30am – 5pm)

If you want to make a professional referral for someone under your care or supervision, call Woman’s Trust on 020 7034 0303.

For immediate advice or support, please call the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.

Angelou is a partnership of West Central London services that support women and girls affected by domestic violence and abuse. You can call Angelou for free on 0808 801 0660, email angelou@advancecharity.org.uk or visit www.angelou.org to find out more.

If you’re a man experiencing domestic abuse, call Respect’s Men’s Advice Line on 0808 8010327, email info@mensadviceline.org.uk or visit www.mensadviceline.org.uk. The ManKind charity can also help you to escape an abusive situation.

If someone you know is aged 60+ and likely to be alone on Christmas Day, please tell them about the H&F Big Christmas Day Lunch. Up to 500 people will celebrate Christmas Day together at Novotel London West. The annual event is free to attend and includes a two-course lunch, live music and a goodie bag.

Almost one million older people in the UK often feel lonely. While this can be hard to cope with at any time of the year, Christmas can be particularly difficult. The festive period can be a painful reminder of loved ones lost or living far away.

The Big Christmas Day Lunch means that people can choose to enjoy the day with others rather than spending it alone. The event is always very popular. Guests and volunteers dance, chat and form new friendships.

It’s completely free to attend and free transport can also be arranged for those who need it.

Get involved

Attend the lunch

If you or someone you know is interested in joining the Big Christmas Day lunch, you can sign up here. The last day to register is December 10th. To attend, you need to be a resident of Hammersmith & Fulham and either be aged 60+ or referred by one of H&F’s services or charities.

Donate to ensure more people can benefit

It costs around £55,000 to run the event, so it’s only thanks to the generosity of local people and businesses that H&F Council can keep the lunch free to attend. Without these donations, many more people would spend Christmas Day alone and lonely. If you’d like to support the lunch, you can find out more and make a donation here.

Volunteer to help local residents

H&F Council is recruiting volunteers to support the Big Christmas Day Lunch. If you can’t volunteer on the day, there are still plenty of ways to get involved, from filling goodie bags to writing Christmas cards. You can sign up to volunteer here.