Congleton Town Council’s White Ribbon group will be in the town centre on Saturday (10 July) from 10am – 2pm hosting a stall as part of the Council’s work to eradicate violence and abuse. White Ribbon Ambassador’s will be on hand to share the important messages about not committing, excusing or remaining silent about abuse and violence, and also where to go to access help and support for those who require it.
In 2020 Congleton Town Council was awarded White Ribbon Accreditation for the work it is doing to stamp out violence. Although the White Ribbon charity is about stopping violence against women and girls, the Town Council is keen to eradicate all violence and abuse and has helped to secure funding for Domestic Abuse clinics in Congleton led by My Cheshire Without Abuse and Congleton Police where anyone can get advice.
Chair of the White Ribbon Working Group, Cllr Robert Hemsley said: “Unfortunately, domestic violence is still real and prevalent across communities. By raising the profile, we hope to get more people talking about the issues and enable more people to realise that there is help out there – both for the victim and perpetrator. Sadly, as a consequence of the COVID-19 Lockdown, cases of domestic abuse and violence have escalated. Congleton currently has an average of one incident of domestic abuse reported per day, and two cases a week of sexual violence.”
The group recently launched a private Facebook page for men and women who want to discuss strategies to talk about eradicating male violence against women and all gender-based violence and abuse. The Facebook page aims to share stories and best practice of what White Ribbon Congleton are doing locally to support this important work. To become a member, people should search on Facebook for the ‘White Ribbon Congleton’ group.
