10th Anniversary of the International Day of the Girl Child

International Day of the Girl Child is celebrating its 10th anniversary. The Police and Crime Commissioner for Cheshire is taking the opportunity to reassure women and girls in Cheshire that crimes against them will be taken seriously and that there is support available to those in need.

International Day of the Girl Child was established by the United Nations to recognise girls’ rights and the unique challenges that they face around the world. It has become a global opportunity to also celebrate the achievements whilst addressing the barriers that girls face in day-to-day life. Women and girls can make up disproportionate number of victims in certain types of crime, including domestic abuse and sexual crimes.

Although women and girls are more likely to be victims of certain crimes, there is also the responsibility to ensure female perpetrators get the support that they need to change their behaviour and reintegrate into society, where appropriate.

Police and Crime Commissioner for Cheshire, John Dwyer, said:

“I am committed to making Cheshire a place where women and girls can thrive and reach their full potential. Today provides a great opportunity to reflect on the progress that is being made and to refocus our efforts to ensure we can continue to support women and girls, not only in Cheshire but across the world.

“I work closely with Cheshire Constabulary on projects to prevent and tackle violence against women and girls. Through the Government’s Safer Streets Fund, I recently secured an additional £1.5 million of funding which will support measures to protect people within the night-time economy. One of the projects that I will be supporting is a behaviour-change programme which will be rolled out in high schools across the county, teaching young people about how to spot harmful behaviours when out at night and intervene in certain situations.”

As well as the projects funded by the Safer Streets Fund, the Commissioner has also supported the use of GoodSAM technology which was secured by his bid to the Safety of Women at Night (SWAN) Fund.

GoodSAM has recently helped the Constabulary to locate and rescue a victim of modern slavery. The technology allows 999 callers to have live video contact with their call handler by sending a link to the individual’s smartphone. The technology also sends their live location through to the Control Centre so that the call handler, and the police if necessary, can locate them quickly and easily.

The Commissioner has also been working closely with the Cheshire-based domestic abuse charity, MyCWA, to launch a programme to educate teenagers on domestic abuse and its warning signs.

John Dwyer added:

“As well as providing support to women and girls who may be victims of crime, it is also important to focus on female perpetrators who need to be rehabilitated and integrated back into society.

“A priority in my Police and Crime Plan is to deliver justice for victims of crime and I am committed to continuing my support for Women’s Centres across the county and their work with female offenders to divert them from the criminal justice system.”

More information on the Commissioner’s Safer Streets funding success is available here: 

www.cheshire-pcc.gov.uk/news/latest-news/2022/07/further-funding-success-for-safer-streets/

There is more information on the International Day of the Girl Child is available on the United Nations website: 

www.un.org/en/observances/girl-child-day