Students at New College Swindon have completed a pilot programme in Healthy Relationship education from the town’s domestic abuse charity, Society Without Abuse (SWA).
Specialist workers from SWA have spent six weeks working with a group of students on the importance of healthy relationships. Aspects including understanding their own behaviour and raising awareness of different ways domestic abuse can present, including honour-based violence and coercive control, as well as sessions on consent and boundaries.
Just last month, the impact of controlling behaviours in relationships was recognised by a change in the law to put coercive control on the same par as physical abuse. These harmful behaviours can often go under the radar in abusive relationships, and young people aged 15 to 25 more are likely to be victims of domestic abuse than any other age group.
Emma Maclennan, CYP Manager at SWA, explained: “Domestic abuse can happen in any type of relationship and to any age group; it doesn’t just happen at home. Coercive control can manifest as actions such as stopping you seeing your friends and family, telling you how to look or behave, putting you down or monitoring what you’re doing. It can be as harmful, if not more harmful, than physical abuse and being able to spot the signs in your own relationships and those of your friends could make a big difference.
“One of the reasons that coercive control can be so hard to spot, even for those experiencing it, is that it usually begins with small actions that can seem innocent, or even caring, but then escalates into something more sinister. A common feature at the start of abusive and controlling relationships is love-bombing – where one partner bombards the other with affection, praise, gifts and attention; often moving the relationship along at a very fast pace, and making the victim feel overwhelmed, beholden to them and so guilty about having doubts.
“By educating young people to expect more in their own relationships, and also where to go for help should they find themselves at the receiving end of these behaviours, we can work to stop the cycle and move closer to our aim of one day seeing a society where abuse no longer exists.”
Talking about the Healthy Relationships programme, New College Swindon student Liam added: “It was really good and I learnt a lot of intriguing and informative things. The session on rape was shocking, as well as learning about honour-based violence. I learnt how to be more aware of things and how to have a healthy relationship.”
For more information on SWA, visit www.societywithoutabuse.org.uk
If you need advice for yourself or a friend relating to Domestic Abuse, call Swindon’s domestic abuse helpline on 01793 610610.
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