Scottish Government’s strategic review recommends single-sex services

Scottish Gov strategic review recommends single-sex services. A response from WPUK.

Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls Services

Woman’s Place welcome the published findings of the Scottish Government’s strategic review Funding and commissioning Violence Against Women And Girls (VAWG) services. We especially thank Lesley Irving, the report’s Chair, for her considerable and valuable work in delivering this necessary report.

Commissioned in 2021, amid a backdrop of febrile and traumatic discourse surrounding women’s need for single-sex spaces, we are reassured the final report prioritises both an evidence and needs based approach to VAWG services. In short, this report is good news for women and girls. 

Although the current reality for victim/survivors, reflected in the report, is bleak, there is hope. Provision for the most marginalised women still falls short, with special mention of women and girls in the penal system, those with learning disabilities, minority ethnic women, transmen, as well as flagging issues caused by rurality. However, a move towards well funded, specialist, by-and-for services offers a pragmatic and trauma informed approach to the provision of single-sex and trans specialist services. And with a transversal approach we hope there is an uptick in the provision of single-sex services across a range of services and policy areas. Read on for our highlighted findings, or you can access the full report here.

 

Single-sex provision

It is therefore our view that single-sex provision should remain, as part of a range of services. This can, as it is currently, be provided in some services alongside a different and equivalent service offer for trans women i.e. without access to shared refuge or groupwork, but with the possibility of access to stand alone refuge, that does not result in their disadvantage or further discrimination, and ensures no regression on secured rights and recognition of trans people. Alternatively, it could be provided as part of the menu of ‘by and for’ services.

The report of the Scottish Government’s Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls Services, p.32 

 

The most frequent cross-cutting theme concerned the need for single-sex services and female-only staff. Respondents highlighted that single-sex services should be made into law, widely available, clearly advertised, and co-exist with non-single-sex options. Responses suggested that single-sex spaces are vital to ensuring victims of VAWG feel safe and protected, otherwise women might self-exclude due to religious or cultural reasons.

The report of the Scottish Government’s Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls Services, Executive Summary. You can read the analysis of responses here.  

This chimes with the extensive evidence WPUK has submitted to the Scottish Government via their 2017 consultation on gender recognition reform, the 2019 consultation on the draft Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill, and the Scottish Government’s consultation on female participation in sport. as well as many submissions to the UK Government’s 2018 consultation on reform of the Gender Recognition Act (GRA), and the UK Parliament Women and Equalities Select Committee’s 2020 inquiry into GRA reform.

The review also echoes the single-sex policy at Women’s Aid England and Wales, demonstrating that the single-sex exceptions in the Equality Act are vital for women and girls and their services. Furthermore, it is yet more weight to the growing evidence that ‘sex’ must be clarified in the law to mean biological sex. 

 

Lesbian & Bisexual victim/survivors

Lesbian and bisexual women experiencing violence from same-sex partners may not feel that services meet their needs, in spite of much work over recent years to explicitly include them. This can be particularly the case in rural areas, where loss of anonymity is a key factor in preventing victims/survivors from seeking support. Greater visibility of lesbian and bisexual women and consideration of their specific needs, which is largely absent from the VAWG agenda currently, would be welcome.

The report of the Scottish Government’s Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls Services, p.24

Specialist ‘by and for’ services in the feminist second wave were initiated by lesbian women; their need for specialist services must be built into models of support across the VAWG sector. The expansion of the LGBT+ umbrella has left many lesbian women feeling isolated from their communities. It is essential therefore that VAWG services respond to the needs of lesbian and bisexual women within their specialist provision. This isolation combined with the research undertaken by the National Rural Crime Network in 2017 evidences an urgent need to ensure women’s services operating in rural areas are prioritised in terms of funding from the Scottish Government. 

 

Women with no recourse to public funds (NRPF)

In her report Safety before Status: the Solutions, published in December 2022, the Domestic Abuse Commissioner for England and Wales sets out options for the Home Office to end the current practice of denying support to women with No Recourse to Public Funds. We support her call to the UK Government to make this change.

The report of the Scottish Government’s Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls Services, p55

At Woman’s Place UK we unequivocally support the need of all women to access life saving support, regardless of their migration status. We thank the domestic abuse commissioner for her clear position on this. 

Male trans-identifying victim/survivors

It is therefore our view that single-sex provision should remain, as part of a range of services. This can, as it is currently, be provided in some services alongside a different and equivalent service offer for trans women i.e. without access to shared refuge or group work, but with the possibility of access to stand alone refuge, that does not result in their disadvantage or further discrimination, and ensures no regression on secured rights and recognition of trans people. Alternatively, it could be provided as part of the menu of ‘by and for’ services.

The report of the Scottish Government’s Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls Services, p.32

Third space options are a logical resolution to this issue. Many specialist services already support trans people within their community provision. A ‘by and for’ model enables trauma informed specialist provision with the best outcomes for service users.

 

Language

 Standards for specialist services should include training on e.g. intersectional approaches and disability/learning disability. Standards around accessibility should also be developed.

The report of the Scottish Government’s Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls Services, p.92

Signposting and service provision must use clear accessible language to enable basic signposting, as well as allow service users to actively consent to the type of service they wish to access. In relation to sex and gender it is fundamental that all services, for reasons of trauma, dignity, faith and safety are clear if they are single or mixed sex.

 

Statutory footing

We recommend that VAWG is put on a statutory footing. This will include: a right in law to our minimum core services; a public duty on service providers to ensure that the full range of minimum core services are provided, and a public duty on prevention identifying children and young people as co-victims in relation to domestic abuse.

However, we also heard about what is perceived as a drift towards the provision of universal services, and away from services tailored to the specific needs of women, children and young people. This is not a direction of travel that we support.

The report of the Scottish Government’s Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls Services, Executive summary p.2

A 2023 Freedom Of Information Request (FOI) by  For Women Scotland, showed that not one of the VAWG service providers in receipt of  ‘Equally Safe’ funding were offering single-sex provision for women and girls in any aspect of their prevision. This exposes an unacceptable situation where funding conditions apparently require VAWG services to have mixed-sex policies as a first principle in order to quality to apply for funding (Equally Safe Fund). You can read more in For Women Scot’s 2019 report ‘Funding Conditions’. 

These same funding conditions have led to a broader chilling effect with services unable to fully participate in the wider debate on single-sex spaces or single-sex VAWG provision, for fears around funding streams. AS a consequence, services have not been able to fully advocate for victims. 

 

Transversal policy making

Transversal policy making is based on the recognition that VAWG is a complex and cross cutting issue which is the responsibility of different policy domains (e.g. education, health, social work, justice, etc) and which requires the active engagement of all sectors. 

A group of rape survivors had a lot to say about this and made a strong call for better training for doctors in particular. Children in the Everyday Heroes project/research identified training on GBV (MVAWG), recognising signs, appropriate responses, children’s rights and signposting to services, as an urgent priority for education professionals and for police/justice system professionals, health and social workers.

The report of the Scottish Government’s Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls Services, p11 & 31

Services across the board must recognise that male violence is a normative experience for women and girls. Understanding and responding to the reality that a third of women are victim/survivors is the duty of all services, from clinics, hospitals, schools, shelters, sports facilities and so on. In addition to response and sign-posting, their policies must reduce the risk that women and girls will be subject to male violence in their services, but embed policies that make their services trauma informed for those that have. 

When policies fail to be actively inclusive to women we know that women will self-exclude from a range of spaces, (not just VAWG services). Sexism, the male gaze, harassment, and assault all combine to exclude, meaning women and girls frequently live smaller lives.

Trauma informed policies (transversal VAWG approach) would include, but not be limited to, single-sex wards, the right upheld to request a female carer/practitioner for intimate care/procedures, facilities to exercise away from the male gaze eg. single-sex swimming/gym sessions). The Sport Scotland Report and our submission to the Scottish government on female participation in sport both emphasise the importance of single-sex spaces for female inclusion in health and sport provision:

Girls and women need an opportunity to participate in physical activity in their own ways. The presence of males, as staff or participants, changes how girls and women participate and therefore alters their experience. Single-sex provision of sporting opportunities is needed and called for by many women and girls and should be provided in the right circumstances and with regard to relevant legislation.

Sport Scotland Report ‘Making Women and Girls More Active

We hope this report will be an effective trigger in demonstrating that service providers in all aspects of public life have a duty to make their facilities safer and more accessible for women and girls. We are thankful that at last these marginalised voices have been heard and centred by Lesley Irving.

It is our hope that providers such as Rape Crisis Scotland, and Woman’s Aid Scotland can engage meaningfully with this report. All survivors deserve better. #DefendingWomensSpaces 

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Further reading

MBM Policy: Edging back to normality? The report of the Scot Gov’s Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of VAWG Services  I  Women and Girls Scotland Report  I  Misogyny a Human Rights Issue The Working Group on Misogyny and Criminal Justice’s independent report on their findings and recommendations.  I  WPUK Submission to WESC on GRA Reform   I  WPUK submission Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee on the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill  I  WPUK submission  The 2018 Scottish Government GRA review,   I  WPUK submission the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee on the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill  I  Celebrating Scottish women by Dr Shonagh Dillon   I  Joint statement on Scottish Government plans to legislate for the self-declaration of sex   I  Review of Karen Ingala Smith’s Defending Women’s Spaces