Wandsworth Council Leader pledges support at event to celebrate and empower women

The Battersea community group held its annual Women of Power conference to focus on the issues facing women today and how the confidence of women and girls can be built up. Battersea MP Marsha de Cordova, Deputy Council Leader Kemi Akinola, Mayor of Wandsworth Juliana Annan and Deputy Mayor of Wandsworth Sana Jafri were also there.  

Simon Hogg spoke about the work Wandsworth Council has been doing to protect the safety of women and girls and help survivors of domestic violence and abuse, including:

• Doubled investment in domestic abuse support including new staff specialising in supporting survivors
• A Violence Against Women and Girls Community Forum to bring together the council, community organisations and the police to find shared solutions.
• Investment in the CCTV network
• New Community Safety Officers targeting areas with high levels of crime and engaging with victims.

This builds on ongoing work to support families and vulnerable people, including London’s biggest Cost of Living support package, and greater investment in youth work.

“As a council, we’ve made tackling violence and abuse a top priority, but it’s clear that we couldn’t possibly do this work alone. The work of our brilliant voluntary and community sector organisations is absolutely vital,” he said.

“As we all know, STORM has an incredible impact on our communities here in Wandsworth, offering support for survivors of domestic abuse, as well as delivering youth activities. We’re really proud to have such a brilliant service in our borough.

“We’ll keep working hard, with the police, with the VCS, and with our residents, to tackle violence and abuse in our borough.”

Rea Cllr Hogg’s full speech 

The theme of International Women's Day 2024 is #InspireInclusion. Find out more about the action Wandsworth Council is taking to tackle inequality and celebrate diversity.