Partnership working tackles violence against women and girls as campaign continues

Nottinghamshire Police and Nottingham-based specialist charity Equation are working together to help tackle violence against women and girls (VAWG) – one of the force’s key strategic objectives.

Nottinghamshire Police's ongoing 'Walk in My Shoes' campaign, which was launched in March, is inviting women and young girls to fill in our online survey to identify problem areas where they feel unsafe.

Schools Early Intervention Officers (SEIO) and Neighbourhood Policing Teams (NPT) have been invited to attend Equation workshop sessions held in primary and secondary schools across our county, in support of our ‘Walk in My Shoes’ campaign, with officers able to observe, gather feedback and take learning from the bespoke sessions.

A recent session, which was focused on the importance of consent, was given to Year 9 pupils at All Saints’ Catholic Voluntary Academy in Mansfield.

PC Natalie Sinclair, Schools Early Intervention Officer (SEIO) for Mansfield and the surrounding area, said: “We aim to go into schools to engage with students and educate them on the dangers and consequences of certain behaviours and on how to stay safe.

“The feedback from the pupils and staff at All Saints’ was really positive.

“There was a lot of engagement during the session delivered by Equation and we spoke to quite a few children afterwards who said they found it very useful and beneficial and that they had learned a lot about consent and staying safe.”

Police still want to hear from as many women and girls as possible across the city and county about the areas they avoid and why and how they can be made safer.

The police will then work with local partners, including councils, to look at ways these areas can be improved where possible.

This could include additional patrols, better lighting or CCTV coverage.

Equation works with the whole community to reduce the impact of domestic abuse, sexual violence and gender inequality – including by providing tailored training sessions in schools covering topics including domestic abuse, gender equality/respecting others, misogyny, consent and controlling behaviours.

Molly Wilson, Children and Young People Service Manager at Equation, said: “We are incredibly passionate about working with the whole community to reduce the impacts of violence against women and girls (VAWG).

“Our contribution to the partnership work with the 'Walk in My Shoes' campaign has meant that PCSOs and officers have attended and observed our Children and Young People Team workshops to understand further the prevention work being done by Equation in this field, as part of the Nottingham VAWG strategy, as well as listen to young people's voices around the topic.

“We have a variety of well-established projects, focused on healthy and unhealthy relationships, across primary and secondary schools, including targeted sessions with vulnerable groups of young people.

“We also train teachers in related topics to enhance the whole school approach to tackling the impacts of VAWG.

“As a service, we are incredibly grateful that these projects are commissioned by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council, who fund our service to deliver healthy relationships projects across Nottinghamshire.

“Thanks to them, we were able to reach over 10,000 children and young people in academic year 23/24, and are forecast to reach over 20,000 children and young people this academic year.”

There’s still time to complete the simple online ‘Walk in My Shoes’ survey, it only takes a few minutes to fill out and will be used to make a real difference in your local area.

Survey here: www.nottinghamshire.police.uk/police-forces/nottinghamshire-police/areas/campaigns/2025/walk-in-my-shoes

So far, more than 2,000 women and girls have filled out our survey with responses from across the city and county including Nottingham city centre, Newark and Mansfield.