The government has launched a new multi-million-pound fund to root out misogynistic attitudes and support women and girls.
The Chancellor, John Healey, and Minister for Women and Equalities, Bridget Phillipson, have announced the first ever misogyny prevention fund.
The government will provide a £15 million injection to the Office for the Impact Economy (OIE) to be invested in schemes over 3 years that could include mentoring for young people, workplace training and communications campaigns to improve outcomes and safety for women and girls across the UK.
This will underpin the government's work with the misogyny prevention taskforce and the fund forms part of wider efforts to prevent violence against women and girls (VAWG) by addressing misogynistic attitudes through early intervention initiatives, education programmes and community-based projects.
The funding will run through the OIE, in partnership with the Office for Equality and Opportunity, utilising the OIE’s expertise in mobilising external funding and partnership working.
A bidding process will be in place through which organisations will receive grants to deliver programmes that meet the government’s ambition of preventing misogyny in all its forms, and reducing its impacts.
The announcement comes amid growing concerns of a link between misogyny and radicalisation. Recent research from the University of Melbourne in Australia found that hostility toward women and misogynistic beliefs are the single strongest predictors of violent extremism, outweighing traditional political or religious ideology.
Work that is already ongoing includes Expect Respect from Women’s Aid – a free programme for schools that educates children on what is and is not normal in relationships and stepping in when it’s safe and investment in mentoring and interventions from positive role models for girls and boys respectively, alongside active bystander training, funded by the Mayor of London.
Chancellor John Healey MP said: "Every woman and girl deserves to feel safe, respected and able to pursue their ambitions – at school, at work and in their communities.
"This investment will back practical action to tackle misogyny head-on, while bringing businesses and philanthropists on board so we can go even further – giving women and girls more opportunity to succeed and hope for the future."
Minister for Women and Equalities Bridget Phillipson said: "Day to day misogyny – from sexist slurs and harassment to workplace discrimination – quite simply has no place in modern Britain.
"The time for talk has long passed, which is why this government is putting its money where its mouth is when it comes to supporting women and girls. This funding is a critical step as we work to confine misogyny to the history books, where it belongs.
"Government is leading from the front, but we all have a role to play. Everyone – from big business to members of the public – can do their bit to stamp out misogyny and improve the lives of women and girls everywhere."
