Richmond takes White Ribbon campaign work to the House of Commons

Richmond's White Ribbon campaign work has been recognised at the House of Commons.

The borough's Community Safey team, including Councillor Gareth Roberts, Leader of Richmond Council, and Councillor Rhi Lee, the borough's White Ribbon champion, were invited to share their campaign work, discuss local experiences with MPs and highlight how national support can help strengthen work in communities.

The visit came as the House of Commons received White Ribbon accreditation. 

Following the visit on Tuesday (3 November), Cllr Lee said: "The House of Commons visit highlights the work taking place across our borough to support the White Ribbon campaign. 

"Richmond is a safe borough, but even one incident of sexual violence is one too many, and feeling safe is just as important as being safe. 

"It's why preventing violence against women and girls is a priority for our Community Safety Partnership and why we have invested in a broad programme of prevention. 

"In our borough, we do not wait until somebody becomes a victim before we act. We are working to challenge the attitudes and behaviours that can lead to harassment and violence in the first place. This includes our active bystander programme, which has now trained 526 people, work in schools on healthy relationships, consent, masculinity and sexual harassment. 

"We have also created practical ways for people to feel safer in public spaces. There are now 19 Safe Havens across Richmond, alongside our Friday night Safe Space at Richmond Station."

White Ribbon is the leading charity in England and Wales working to prevent men's violence against women and girls. 

Richmond Council is a White Ribbon-accredited organisation. Its campaign work brings together the council, police, schools, health services, businesses, specialist charities and community organisations through the Community Safety Partnership. The focus is on preventing harm, helping people get support earlier and ensuring that local services work together. 

Activity includes the 16 Days of Activism, university partnerships, school-based programmes, work with the Youth Council, bystander training and wider awareness-raising and engagement. 

Alongside this, Richmond Council recently launched a free e-learning course for licensed venues, businesses and hospitality staff to help them prevent, recognise and respond to sexual harassment, drink spiking and concerns involving vulnerable customers.