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VISION gender-based violence research findings presented at European conference

    The European Network on Gender and Violence (ENGV) is an interdisciplinary, international network supporting exchange and collaboration among researchers, scholars, and professionals. Each year, the ENGV hosts a conference that provides a forum for current research related to gender-based violence (GBV). The annual event provides an excellent opportunity for many of the VISION researchers to present their findings and to engage and connect with others.

    This year, the ENGV conference was held at Vilnius University, Lithuania, from June 26-28. Eleven VISION / VASC colleagues attended and shared their GBV research in either a presentation or a poster. VISION GBV topics included measurement, intersectionality, migration and forced sex and marriage.

    Presentations:

    • Niels Blom and Vanessa Gash, The effects of intimate partner violence and abuse on job loss and time off work
    • Ruth Weir and Sally McManus, Findings from the interdisciplinary VISION consortium: Measuring violence to reduce its impact
    • Jana Kriechbaum, Normative Borders: The paradox around insecure-migrant women experiencing intimate partner violence in post-Brexit Britain
    • Hannah Manzur, Inequality Dimensions of Violence: Disparities and Disproportionalities in Victimisation and Fear by Gender, Ethnicity and Migrant-status
    • Ladan Hashemi and Sally McManus, The Multifaceted Nature of VAWG in LMI Countries: The Case of Forced Sex and Forced Marriage in Iran

    Posters

    We are also thrilled to announce that the 2026 ENGV annual conference will be held at City St George’s 24-26 June at the Clerkenwell campus. Planning will begin in spring 2025 with a Call for Proposals announced in the summer. Check the VISION website for details next year or email us at VISION_Management_Team@city.ac.uk to be added to the ENGV 2026 email group distribution list to receive updates.

    Photograph: (left to right) Annie Bunce and Polina Obolenskaya in front of their poster at the ENGV conference 2024.

    Commercial determinants of violence highlighted at World Safety Conference by Prof Mark Bellis

      This September, on behalf of the VISION research consortium and Liverpool John Moores University, Professor Mark Bellis gave the plenary violence prevention address to World Safety Conference in in New Delhi, India.

      World Safety 2024 is the World Health Organization’s biennial global conference on injury prevention and safety promotion, covering all aspects of violence and unintentional injury.

      Mark’s plenary dealt with the commercial determinants of violence based on a paper published earlier this year with his VISION colleagues, Professor Sally McManus and Dr Olumide Adisa, and others.

      In his presentation, Mark outlined how, as well as governments, public sector organisations and charities, commercial organisations also have a major part to play in the prevention of violence. The plenary considered commercial influence on violence through political, scientific, marketing supply/waste chain, labour & employment financial and reputational management practices. For some industries such as the arms and alcohol industries their relationships the causes of violence are already relatively well understood. However, mining, financial, social media, clothing and other manufacturing industries are also contributors to a growing violence problem.

      The plenary presentation addressed commercial impacts on child maltreatment, sexual and domestic violence, youth violence and elder abuse. It also explored how companies can, and should, move from being part of the violence problem to leaders in implementing solutions. 

      Learning across statutory reviews

        This VISION policy briefing summarises themes arising from the symposium, Learning across statutory review practices: origins, ambitions and future directions, held as part of the 2024 VISION Annual Conference on 11 June.

        The symposium was led by Dr Elizabeth Cook, City, UoL, and Dr James Rowlands, University of Westminster.

        The following panellists introduced several of the statutory reviews and shared their thoughts on lessons learnt and the future:

        • Dr Bethan Davies, Cardiff University: Wales Single Unified Safeguarding Review (SUSR)
        • Professor Emeritus Jonathan Dickens, University of East Anglia: Child safeguarding
        • Frank Mullane, Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse (AAFDA): Ambitions for learning and change across systems
        • Professor Emeritus Michael Preston-Shoot, University of Bedfordshire: Adult safeguarding
        • Sumanta Roy, Imkaan: Domestic Homicide Reviews

        After the series of presentations, as part of breakout roundtable discussions, conference attendees were invited to explore how different statutory reviews are conducted and practised, their ambitions, and challenges for the future.

        This briefing is for practitioners and managers who participate in or lead statutory reviews. The briefing will also be of interest to policy makers and senior leaders from local and national government who commission or oversee statutory review processes.

        The policy is available in the public domain, Learning across statutory review practices: Origins, ambitions, and future directions (figshare.com).

        For further information, please contact Lizzie at elizabeth.cook@city.ac.uk.

        Celebrating courage: Empowering voices against honour-based abuse

          This event is in the past. For further information on ‘honour’-based abuse and how the event went, please see our blog, Empowering voices against ‘honour’-based abuse: A call to action – City Vision.

          Join IKWRO and the UKPRP VISION consortium for an enlightening and impactful event dedicated to raising awareness and understanding of ‘honour’-based abuse.

          We are proud to partner with women’s rights organisation, IKWRO, and host their upcoming event, Celebrating courage: Empowering voices against honour-based abuse, Friday 18 October 2024 at City, UoL.

          IKWRO works to safeguard and empower women and girls against ‘honour-based’ abuse across the UK. Their mission is to advance Middle Eastern, North African, and Afghan women’s and girls’ rights, tackle discrimination and violence against women and girls, and empower women and girls to access their rights and entitlements in the UK. 

          In honour of the International Day of the Girl Child, this in-person event is dedicated to raising awareness and understanding of “honour”-based abuse, which is predominantly suffered by women and girls.

          Professionals, students, survivors, and anyone interested in understanding and combating honour-based abuse are welcome. This is an opportunity to learn from experts, connect with others in the field, and contribute to a meaningful dialogue on this important issue.

          Event Highlights

          • Panel Discussions with a Q&A Session: An open forum for attendees to engage with our speakers and ask questions about honour-based abuse and how to tackle it effectively.
          • Experts in the field will discuss the nuances of honour-based abuse, its identification, and the challenges in differentiating it from domestic violence.
          • Survivors and advocates will share their personal stories and discuss support systems and empowerment strategies.

          Event Details

          Presentations from the 2024 VISION Annual Conference

            The presentations from the 3rd VISION annual conference are now available for downloading.

            The event was held at Kings College London, Strand campus, on 11 June. The theme was Violence prevention in research and policy: Bridging silos. Keynote speakers, Dr Claudia Garcia-Moreno (World Health Organisation) and Professor Katrin Hohl (City, UoL) considered the changes needed for effective violence prevention from the perspectives of health and justice. Three symposiums highlighted interdisciplinary research from the VISION consortium and partners on:

            – Violence against older people: Challenges in research and policy;

            – Learning across statutory review practices: Origins, ambitions and future directions; and

            – Responding to experiences and expressions of interpersonal violence in the workplace

            Approximately 80 academics, central and local government officials, practitioners, and voluntary and community sector organisations attended from a range of health and crime / justice disciplines.

            All the slides that could be shared are available below. Please feel free to download.

            Photo caption: Symposium 3, ‘Responding to experiences and expressions of interpersonal violence in the workplace’. From left to right: Chair, Dr Olumide Adisa (University of Suffolk) and Panellists Dr Vanessa Gash (City, UoL), Dr Alison Gregory (Alison Gregory Consulting), Catherine Buglass (Employers’ Initiative on Domestic Abuse) and Dr Niels Blom (City, UoL)

            Professor Gene Feder, VISION Director – Welcome – 1 download

            Welcome_VISION-Annual-Conference-2024Download

            Keynote Speaker, Dr Claudia Garcia-Moreno – Violence against women: From research to policy and action – 1 download

            Keynote-Speaker-2_Research-to-policy-and-action_2Download

            Symposium 1 – Violence against older people: Challenges in research and policy – 4 downloads (Hourglass, Office for National Statistics, Public Health Wales & VISION)

            Symposium-1_Older-people-and-violence_HourglassDownload
            Symposium-1_Older-people-and-violence_ONSDownload
            Symposium-1_Older-people-and-violence_PHWDownload
            Symposium-1_Older-people-and-violence_VISIONDownload

            Symposium 2 – Learning across statutory review practices: Origins, ambitions and future directions – 1 download

            Symposium-2_Statutory-Review-Practice_AllDownload

            Symposium 3 – Responding to experiences and expressions of interpersonal violence in the workplace – 3 downloads (Employers’ Initiative on Domestic Abuse, and 2 from VISION)

            Symposium-3_Violence-and-the-workplace_VISIONDownload
            Symposium-3_Violence-and-the-workplace_EIDADownload
            Symposium-3_Violence-and-the-workplace_VISION-2Download

            Event: Zero tolerance to female genital mutilation

              This event is in the past.

              The International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is 6 February every year. The United Nations Assembly designated the day with the aim to amplify and direct the efforts on the elimination of this practice.

              In support to highlight the day and the horrific practice of FGM, IKWRO, a London-based human rights organisation for Middle Eastern, North African and Afghan women and girls living in the UK, is hosting Zero tolerance to female genital mutilation on 5 February 2024, 2 – 5 pm, in London at Resource for London, 356 Holloway Road, London N7 6PA.

              The event brings together experts and survivors to shed light on the challenges and gaps in safeguarding women and girls globally in the context of FGM:

              • Payzee Mahmod, Campaign Manager at IKWRO
              • Naana Otoo-Oyortey, Executive Director of FORWARD, an African diaspora women’s rights organisation in the UK
              • Mama Sylla, an FGM survivor and chairwoman of La FRATERNITE UK, a London-based registered charity
              • Shamsa Araweelo, an FGM survivor and social activist
              • Janet Fyle, Royal College of Midwives’ (RCM) Professional Policy Advisor and a Cardiff University School of Policy Law accredited Expert Witness
              • Jaswant Kaur Narwal, Chief Crown Prosecutor
              • Aisha K. Gill, Ph.D., CBE is Professor of Criminology at University of Bristol
              • Detective Superintendent Alex Castle, Metropolitan Police and Lead Responsible Officer for Harmful Practices and co-chair of the London Harmful Practice Working Group

              Speakers and attendees will engage in discussions about the pressing issues surrounding FGM such as the challenges and barriers to disclosure, reporting and prosecution and explore ways to bridge the existing gaps through policy changes, community involvement and institutional improvements.

              For further information on the free event and to register, please see: Zero Tolerance to FGM Conference

              Or please contact VISION Senior Research Fellow, Dr Ladan Hashemi at: ladan.hashemi@city.ac.uk

              Photo by Joel Muniz on Unsplash

              VISION Research Fellows presenting at Crime Surveys User Conference 2024

                This event is in the past.

                VISION researchers Dr Polina Obolenskaya, Dr Elouise Davies and Dr Niels Blom will present at the Crime Surveys User Conference 2024 on 6 February 2024 in Islington, London.

                The event brings data producers and data users together to share updates on the development of the surveys and to showcase research that is being carried out using the data. It is organised by the UK Data Service in collaboration with the Office for National Statistics, Scottish Government and the Home Office.

                Polina, Elouise and Niels will each discuss the findings of their recent research using the Crime Survey for England and Wales:

                • Polina – The rise, fall and stall of violence in England and Wales: How have risks of violence changed for groups in the population?
                • Elouise – When there’s more than one assailant: Understanding variation in victims’ needs
                • Niels – New Crime Survey for England and Wales integration code: Impact for investigating
                  rare events such as different intimate partner perpetrator types

                For further information on the conference, please see: Crime Surveys User Conference 2024.

                For further information on their research, please contact Polina, Elouise or Niels at: polina.obolenskaya@city.ac.uk; e.davies4@lancaster.ac.uk; or niels.blom@city.ac.uk

                Photo by Headway on Unsplash

                VISION Adolescent Domestic Abuse conference

                  This event is in the past.

                  If registered, please enter through the main entrance in the University Building, across from Northampton Square, a green space with a gazebo. There is also a silver sculpture in front of University Building.

                  Only those that registered will be able to enter the conference room.

                  To register please see: VISION and VASC Adolescent Domestic Abuse conference

                  The UK Prevention Research Partnership Violence, Health & Society (VISION) consortium and the Violence and Society Centre at City, University of London, are pleased to announce the Adolescent Domestic Abuse conference.

                  Thursday 18th April 2024, 10:00 – 17:00 followed by a reception 
                  Oliver Thompson Lecture Theatre (Tait Bldg), City, University of London, EC1B 0HB 

                  Adolescent domestic abuse, which includes physical, emotional, and/or sexual abuse that occurs between young people who are, or were, dating, is often overlooked in research, policy and practice. The current definition of domestic abuse leaves those aged under 16 in teenage relationships falling into the gap between child protection procedures and adult-focused domestic abuse policy. 

                  The conference brings together academics, practitioners, and policy makers to share existing research, policy and practice.

                  Registration is required and free. This is an in person conference only and catering will be provided. If you cannot attend but would like the slides, please contact the email listed below.

                  The programme: 

                  • 9:30 – 10:00 Registration & refreshments 
                  • 10:00 – 10:20 Welcome & setting the scene, Dr Ruth Weir, Violence and Society Centre, City, University of London and Katy Barrow-Grint, Assistant Chief Constable, Thames Valley Police
                  • 10:20 – 10:40 Introductory Speaker, Louisa Rolfe OBE, Metropolitan Police and National Police Chief Council lead for Domestic Abuse
                  • 10:40 – 11:00 Rapid evidence review on domestic abuse in teenage relationships, Flavia Lamarre, and Dr Ruth Weir, City, University of London
                  • 11:00 – 11:30 Learning from the lived experience, SafeLives Changemakers
                  • 11:30 – 12:00 Researching abuse within teenage relationships: A critique of a decade’s work and what we could do better, Professor Christine Barter, Co-Director of the Connect Centre for International Research on Interpersonal Violence and Harm, University of Central Lancashire 
                  • 12:00 – 13:00 Lunch
                  • 13:00 – 14:20 Panel 1: Teenage relationships and abuse: What the research says, chaired by Professor Sally McManus, Director of the Violence and Society Centre and Deputy Director of the VISION research project
                  • Panel 1: Step up, Speak Out: Amplifying young people’s voices in understanding and responding to adolescent domestic abuse, Janelle Rabe, Centre for Research into Violence and Abuse, Durham University
                  • Panel 1: ‘In practice it can be so much harder’: Young people’s approaches and experiences of supporting friends experiencing domestic abuse, Jen Daw and Sally Steadman South, SafeLives
                  • Panel 1: Healthy relationships: children and young people attitudes and influences, Hannah Williams and Sarah Davidge, Women’s Aid
                  • Panel 1: Intimate partner femicide against young women, Dr Shilan Caman, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
                  • 14:20 – 14:35 Break
                  • 14:35 – 15:35 Panel 2: Sexual violence in teenage relationships, chaired by Katy Barrow-Grint, Thames Valley Police
                  • Panel 2: “Always the rule that you can’t say no”: Adolescent women’s experiences of sexual violence in dating relationships – Dr Kirsty McGregor, Loughborough University 
                  • Panel 2: Empowering Youth: Addressing Online Pornography and Adolescent Domestic Abuse – Insights from the CONSENT Project – Berta Vall, Elena Lloberas and Jaume Grané, Blanquerna, Barcelona, Spain and The European Network for Work with Perpetrators of Domestic Violence, Berlin, Germany
                  • Panel 2: Image-Based Sexual Abuse as a Facet of Domestic Abuse in Young People’s Relationships – Dr Alishya Dhir, Durham University
                  • 15:35 – 15:50 Break
                  • 15:50 – 16:50 Panel 3: Specialist services and local government, chaired by Dr Olumide Adisa, University of Suffolk
                  • Panel 3: The role and value of Early Intervention Workers in supporting children and young people aged 11–18 in a domestic abuse service context – Elaha Walizadeh and Leonor Capelier, Refuge 
                  • Panel 3: Prevention, Identification, Intervention and Protection: Learning on teenage domestic abuse from a multi-agency model in the London Borough of Islington – Aisling Barker, Islington Borough Council
                  • Panel 3: Tackling adolescent domestic abuse in Lambeth – Rose Parker, Erika Pavely, Ariana Markowitz, and Siofra Peeren, Lambeth Health Inequalities Research and Evaluation Network 
                  • 16:50 – 17:00 Closing remarks and next steps
                  • 17.00 – onwards Drinks reception, Conference attendees are invited to a drinks reception in the Oliver Thompson foyer

                  The abstracts

                  The abstracts and information on the poster presentations and stands are below for downloading.

                  ADA-abstracts-allDownload

                  For further information and any questions, please contact VISION at VISION_Management_Team@city.ac.uk

                  Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

                  Presentations from 2nd VISION annual conference now available

                    We are pleased to provide the presentations from our 2nd annual conference held 21 September 2023 at Mary Ward House in London. 

                    The theme was Responding to violence across the life course. Sessions included presentations on childhood and teenage years; working life, poverty & economic impacts; older years; and social inclusion in policy and research. The conference concluded with a panel discussion on violence and complex systems.

                    Seventy-seven academics, central and local government officials, practitioners, and voluntary and community sector organisations attended from a range of health and crime / justice disciplines.

                    Please feel free to download the presentations below. Each session is one download.

                    Photo caption: Dr Ladan Hashemi, Senior Research Fellow at VISION, answers a question after her presentation, ‘Adverse Childhood Experiences and Childhood Obesity:​ Exploring Potential Mediating and Moderating Factors​’

                    Download the Welcome slides

                    VISION-Annual-Conference-2023_Welcome-1Download

                    Download the slides from Session 1 – Childhood and teenage years

                    VISION-Annual-Conference-2023_Session-1-Childhood-and-teenage-yearsDownload

                    Download the slides from Session 2 – Social inclusion in policy & research

                    VISION-Annual-Conference-2023_Session-2-Social-inclusion-in-policy-and-researchDownload

                    Download the slides from Session 3 – Working life, poverty and economic impacts

                    VISION-Annual-Conference-2023_Session-3-Working-life-and-economic-impactsDownload

                    Download the slides from Session 4 – Older people

                    VISION-Annual-Conference-2023_Session-4-Older-people

                    Call for proposals now closed: Adolescent domestic abuse

                      The call for proposals for the Adolescent Domestic Abuse conference on 18 April 2024, is now closed.

                      The event is free to attend, and registration will open in early 2024. For any questions or comments about the upcoming conference in the meantime, please contact Ruth Weir at ruth.weir@city.ac.uk or VISION_Management_Team@city.ac.uk.

                      We invited proposals for conference presentations and welcome applications from researchers, academics, practitioners, and policy makers. 

                      Adolescent domestic abuse, which includes physical, emotional, and/or sexual abuse that occurs between young people who are, or were, dating, is often overlooked in research, policy and practice. The current definition of domestic abuse leaves those in teenage relationships falling into the gap between child protection procedures and adult-focused domestic abuse policy (Barrow-Grint et al, 2022).    

                      The Crime Survey for England and Wales finds that women aged 16 to 19 are more likely to experience domestic abuse than any other age group (ONS, 2020), but despite the prevalence, women in this age group are less likely to be referred to support services (SafeLives, 2017). The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 brought in new legislation that saw children who live in a home where domestic abuse takes place recognised for the first time as victims in their own right. The Act also lowered the minimum age for a person to be classified as a victim of domestic abuse from 18 to 16 years.

                      However, research from SafeLives found that, on average, experiencing abusive behaviour from a partner begins at age 14 or 15, leaving a gap in recognition and support for those under the age of 16 (SafeLives, 2017).  Research among those aged 11-16 in Wales found a range of mental health and social impacts associated with experiencing domestic abuse, including teenage pregnancy, self-harm and violent behaviour (Young et al, 2021). 

                      These challenges are echoed by those trying to police domestic abuse, with the Assistant Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police questioning whether the age at which domestic abuse is recognised in law and practice for victims and perpetrators should be lowered to 13.

                      We acknowledge this is a complex and contested question that needs significant research and nuanced consideration from many angles. For example, consideration of intersectional issues such as the criminalisation of young people and the lack of alternatives to custody currently available to those who use harmful or abusive behaviours, as well as issues pertaining to cultural backgrounds. 

                      Proposals for single presentations on topics relating to adolescent domestic abuse were encouraged to include – but not limited to – the following topics:  

                      • Empirical evidence on victimisation and/or perpetration of adolescent domestic abuse 

                      • Evidence on different approaches, theories or practices in response to adolescent domestic abuse  

                      • Policy or practice initiatives, developments or frameworks (including legal) regarding adolescent domestic abuse

                      The conference is organised and hosted by the following:

                      Photo by Eliott Reyna on Unsplash