A GROUP of Vale girls, aged 13 to 17, have been visiting schools in the area, speaking out about sexual harassment and other challenges that they face.
They are members of Her Voice Wales – a project set up to empower young people to become champions of equality in their communities. Their goal is to give other young people the tools needed to change perception and attitudes towards girls.
The group were recently awarded ‘Project of the Year’ at the Vale Council Youth Service awards. Group member Jamie, 17, said: “Obviously, everyone knows sexual harassment is a really big issue.
“But when you’ve got people as young as 13 experiencing it, it really affects the people we speak to. Some adults didn’t realise how much of an issue it was.”
Last year, with funding through Plan International UK’s Young Changemakers programme, funded by the Moondance Foundation, the group launched a slate of speaker events and campaigns in Wales.
“In doing this project, we’ve already made such an impact in our area,” said Ashleigh, 17.
“People are starting to come around to what we’re saying about the need for gender equality and you can really see the difference we’ve made already.”
The group delivers assemblies in schools. They also attend meetings with decision makers.
Ashleigh added: “Just seeing how many people turn up to the meetings, and then join the project shows how many people are passionate about it.”
The group also uses social media to highlight how young people feel unsafe when going about their lives at school and in the community. Her Voice Wales set up #WEDONTFEELSAFE, an online campaign to raise awareness about public sexual harassment and gender-based violence, encouraging young people to join in and share their experiences.
As a result of the campaign, they were able to gather survey responses and put together a report which was delivered to the Vale Council.
Her Voice Wales was one of 11 groups invited by Plan International to Salesforce Tower in London, for an event celebrating their campaign work. Delivering a talk, Ashleigh said that their research showed that 95% of the 129 girls in the Vale surveyed don’t always feel safe on public transport. Their advocacy helped encourage the council to install more CCTV cameras as a result.
Her Voice Wales #WEDONTFEELSAFE
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