Birmingham City Council is to launch an online portal where women experiencing domestic abuse can find advice and information on support services as part of its Inform Women, Transform Lives campaign.
Birmingham was chosen as one of 12 international cities to participate in a global campaign led by the US-based organisation the Carter Center, which aims to educate and enable women can access information and play an active role in society.
To mark International Women’s Day (8 March 2022), the city council is unveiling its plans which will enable women to make informed choices that can make a real difference to their lives, and those of their families, which is why taking part in this campaign is so important for Birmingham.
Working with city partners, including Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid, this project will highlight information women need when they start building their own safety action plans to help them escape abusive partners.
Cllr John Cotton, Cabinet Member for Social Inclusion, Community Safety and Equalities, said: “Being able to access the right information at the right time, safely – especially for those looking to escape domestic abuse and protect their families – is absolutely vital, so I’m sure this will prove an invaluable portal for those looking for essential information.
“We know domestic abuse has a long lasting impact on the safety, health and wider life chances of women and their families, which can drive wider crises such as homelessness and financial exclusion.
“We also know that information empowers women, strengthens their voices and enables them to take action – so we will be working with our city partners to ensure women can quickly and easily access the information they need.”
The overall goals of the Inform Women, Transform Lives campaign are to enhance awareness of women’s right to information, increase the number of women accessing information about municipal and social services in participating cities, and support participating local governments in reaching women with meaningful information
The 11 other cities taking part in this year’s campaign are Bogota, Colombia; Casablanca, Morocco; Dhaka North, Bangladesh; Freetown, Sierra Leone; Maputo, Mozambique; Montevideo, Uruguay; Nairobi, Kenya; Paris, France; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Tunis, Tunisia; and Washington DC, United States of America.
For more information about the campaign and work previous cities have done to help women access information, please visit visit www.cartercenter.org/info4women
