Chapter 5: Create and develop sustainable places and communities

Gender inequalities are often reflected and reinforced through the process of planning and design. Faced with challenges from transportation services that prioritise commuting over care giving, to the lack of lighting and toilets in public spaces, many women and girls around the world feel inconvenienced, uncomfortable, and unsafe in many urban environments. Historically, such urban planning and design has, unfortunately, helped reinforce gender inequalities.
(The World Bank (2020). Handbook for gender-inclusive urban planning and design)

Promoting gender equalities with our planners, designers, community members and decision makers is important so that we can achieve prosperity for all. After all, both design and planning influence the environment around us and that environment shapes how we live, work, play, move and rest. 

Despite various initiatives and advancements, women and girls still do not feel safe in public. Many have experienced being verbally and physically harassed in the street, in both urban and rural areas. Reports of feeling unsafe when travelling alone are common and many women and girls feel they need to adapt their behaviours to avoid harassment.
(Plan International (2020). The state of girls' rights in the UK 2019-2020)

There continues to be a one-sided perspective on the urban agenda, with many urban planning and design fields being dominated by men. Internationally, women occupy just 10% of the highest-ranking jobs at the world's leading architecture firms and in the US comprise only 13.6% of architects and engineers. In the UK, 71% of people on the Architects Register at the end of 2019 were male and 29% female. Encouragingly, gender parity was achieved among UK architects for those under 30 (ARB Annual Accounts), with a 50/50 split between males and females being registered.
(Architects Registration Board. (2020). ARB Publishes its latest annual report.)

However, latest figures (2021) suggest females make up just 16.5% of all engineers in the UK.
(Silbey SS (2016). Why do so many women who study engineering leave the field?)

Because of a variety of reasons, such as economic pressures, social norms and caring responsibilities, women and girls are often underrepresented in community planning and design processes too. As such, it is very difficult for women and girls to make their voices heard in this area.

There are many connections between the built environment, gender bias in planning and design processes and also social and economic exclusion. However if a gender-inclusive approach is taken, the opposite can happen.
(The World Bank (2020). Handbook for gender-inclusive urban planning and design.)

There are six aspects of the built environment that when combined with gender inequalities, lead to restrictions and inconvenience, and even potential danger to women and girls. However, by addressing each issue and turning them into opportunities, a more economic and socially inclusive environment is promoted:
(The World Bank (2020). Handbook for gender-inclusive urban planning and design.)

1. Accessible	Everyone can access the public areas freely, easily, and comfortably to use the spaces and services on offer
2. Connected	Everyone can move around the city safely, easily and affordably to reach key opportunities and services
3. Safety	Everyone is free from real and perceived danger, in public and private
4. Healthy	Everyone has the opportunity to lead an active lifestyle, free from environmental health risks
5. Climate resilient	Everyone has the tools and social networks to successfully prepare for, respond to, and cope with climate disasters
6. Secure	Everyone can obtain or access secure housing and land to live, work and build wealth and agency

Gateshead has published a Core Strategy and Urban Core Plan.

Although the plan does not directly address gender, there are a number of objectives and policies that enable the Council, and its partners, to plan positively for gender equality. All development is fully inclusive, irrespective of cultural background, ethnicity, and age. This is so that we are able to meet, and celebrate, the diverse and cultural needs of 
our residents and communities. Preparation of the Local Plan included various stages of consultation with many organisations and individuals included to ensure residents of Gateshead were represented and inequalities could be addressed.

The Core Strategy and Urban Core Plan aims to: 

• Provide opportunities to enable a high quality of life and to enhance the wellbeing of people and reduce inequalities
• Ensure a connected, distinctive, and thriving borough to help drive growth and support a successful sustainable future (referred to as the Spatial Strategy for Sustainable Growth)
• Improve transport, incorporating direct, safe, secure, and continuous pedestrian and cycling links
• Improve wellbeing and health, such as creating an age friendly, healthy and equitable living environment
• Create 'good place-making' which means creating safe and inclusive environments, ensuring connectivity and accessibility, and strengthening the connection between people and the places they share

It's worth noting that despite the bias towards men in the planning profession nationally and internationally, this is not the case within the Spatial Development Team in Gateshead. Of the eight Planners and Senior Planners in the team, six of them identify as female. The team is also led by a female Service Director. This strong female-led team provides further opportunities to ensure gender is considered within the planning process.

Violence is not something that just happens, nor is it normal or acceptable in our society. Violence is preventable. 
(Bellis MA, Hughes K, Perkins C and Bennett A (2012). Protecting people. Promoting health. A public health approach to violence prevention for England.)

The key influences that make individuals, families, and communities vulnerable to violence are changeable. This includes exposure to adverse childhood experiences as well as the environments in which we live, learn and work. Understanding these factors means we can develop and adopt new public health-based approaches to violence. Such approaches focus on stopping violence from occurring in the first place by reducing known risk factors and promoting the known protective factors throughout the life course.

In July 2021, the government launched its Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy.
(Home Office. (2021). Tackling violence against women and girls strategy.)

Evidence presented in the strategy suggests that some forms of violence against women and girls are so commonplace that many women and girls don't even think they are worth reporting. This is the case for incidents like being grabbed, touched, and/or threatened by strangers.

Nationally, 20% of women are victims of sexual assault or attempted assault in their lifetime compared with 5% of men.

Over 27% of women aged 16+ had experienced domestic abuse compared with 14% of men. The rate of domestic abuse and crime has increased over time.

20% of women aged 16-74 years had experienced stalking compared with 10% of men.

Crimes such as rape, female genital mutilation, stalking, harassment and digital crimes such as cyberflashing, 'revenge porn' and 'up skirting' are taking place every day across the country. Reports to domestic abuse helplines continue to increase, with women and girls sharing their personal experiences of sexual abuse via Child safety online (opens new window).

A whole-system and whole-society response is needed to prevent violence. The government's Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy sits alongside the Domestic Abuse Act 2021,Gov.Uk (2021). Domestic Abuse Act 2021, and the Serious Violence Duty 2022.
(Home Office. (2022). Serious Violence Duty: Preventing and reducing serious violence. Statutory guidance for responsible authorities.)

Through all three, there is a real opportunity to reduce the prevalence of violence against women and girls, improve the support and response for victims and survivors and help agencies work together more effectively to address, and prevent, violence.

Gateshead Council has a statutory duty to:

• Establish and conduct Domestic Homicide Reviews where a death of a person aged 16 years or older has resulted from domestic abuse.
• Appoint a Domestic Abuse Local Partnership Board
• Assess the need and publish a strategy for the provision of Safe Accommodation.

A wide range of circumstances relating to individuals, their relationships, and the communities and societies in which they live can act together to increase or reduce vulnerability to violence.

The Crime Survey for England and Wales showed that amongst adults aged 16 to 74 (March 2020):
(ONS. (2022). Crime in England and Wales: year ending June 2022.)

• people with a disability are more than twice as likely to have been victims of domestic abuse, stalking or rape than people without a disability
• people who are gay, lesbian or bisexual are more likely to be victims of domestic abuse than heterosexual people. This is also the case for stalking, sexual violence and rape
• people of mixed ethnicity are more likely to have been victims of crime than any other groups
• young people are most likely to be victims of violent crime
• Whilst men are more likely to be the victims of violence, for each age group, females are more likely to suffer sexual assault and threats of violence than males, more likely to experience longer periods of abuse, repeat victimisation, physical injury and emotional harm 

The impact of violence is huge and affects those living in more disadvantaged areas the most. The negative impact can be long-lasting, damaging both physical and emotional health. Violence increases a person's risk of various health damaging behaviours, including further violence, and reduces their life prospects in terms of education, employment, and social and emotional wellbeing. Violence also prevents people using outdoor space and public transport and reduces the development of community cohesion.

Mental health

Short term and long term impacts include anger, frustration, decreased self-esteem, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and a loss of identity.

Physical harm 

Victims' physical health can suffer as they're likely to engage in harmful behaviours such as smoking, substance misuse and poor eating habits.

Negative employment, educational and financial impacts 

Victims may miss school or work, struggle to find and maintain employment or be forced to incur debt by their perpetrator. There are links between lack of financial independence and sustained levels of domestic abuse, meaning this is a barrier to victims leaving an abusive situation.

Homelessness 

Violence, especially domestic abuse can lead to homelessness for women and children as they lose their home due to lack of income or they flee their home to find safety.

Negative impact on children and family 

Being exposed to violence and adversity in the household can affect a child's educational attainment, mental health and likelihood of engaging in risky behaviours, such as smoking, substance use, violence victimisation and perpetration later in life.

Children are particularly affected by violence. 62% of children who live with domestic abuse are directly harmed by the perpetrator.
(CAADA. (2014). CAADA Insights 2: In plain sight: The evidence from children exposed to domestic abuse)

This is in addition to the harm that is caused for children when they witness the abuse of others. In Gateshead between April and June 2022, there were 1,532 domestic abuse incidents reported to Northumbria Police and 42% of these incidents had children involved.
(Gateshead Council. (2022) Local Data (unpublished).)

Abuse in childhood also increases the risk of cancer, heart disease, sexually transmitted infections, substance use, and a wide range of health conditions that are currently stretching health care resources.
(Save the Children. (2022). Gender roles can create lifelong cycle of inequality)

Domestic abuse

The crime survey for England and Wales (March 2022) estimated that around 5% of adults aged 16 years and over (2.4million) experienced domestic abuse in the last year. 10.4million adults had experienced domestic abuse since the age of 16 years, which is about 22 in 100 adults.
(ONS. (2022). Crime in England and Wales: year ending March 2022)

An estimated 6.9% of women (1.7 million) and 3.0% of men (699,000) experienced domestic abuse in the last year.
(ONS. (2022). Domestic abuse victim characteristics, England and Wales: year ending March 2022.)

Domestic abuse levels are higher in the North East compared with England, with 7.1% of women and 1.0% of men reporting domestic abuse. The gap for reported domestic abuse by gender is greater in the North East compared with national figures. Domestic abuse has also been increasing in Gateshead.
(Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. (2023) Public health profiles.)

 
Domestic abuse-related incidents and crimes (Crude rate per 1,000)

Since 2010, the local domestic abuse service has been provided by Gateshead Council. We have a Domestic Abuse Team which supports clients of all ages, both genders, and delivers direct support to children and young people. Support is available via this team to people who are 'high' or 'medium' risk. The Gateshead Targeted Family Support or partner agencies support those people and their families who are of 'standard' risk.

The number of referrals to our Domestic Abuse Team has increased by 6.20% from 2021 to 2022, where the team is averaging 35 referrals a week. The Police submit 69% of all referrals. There is also a high number of self-referrals through a 24 hour telephone helpline. Of all of the female referrals, 93% are for those aged 15-49 and 7% are aged 50 and above.
(Gateshead Council. (2022) Local Data (unpublished).)

4.8% of women in England and Wales experienced partner abuse in the year ending March 2022, compared with 2.1% of men.117 While all intimate partner violence is under reported, some forms can be particularly hidden. For example, there are estimated to be at least 5,000 to 8,000 reported cases of forced marriage in England each year. This occurs when one, or both, spouses do not (or cannot) consent to the marriage and pressure is involved. Around 85% of such cases involve female victims, who can suffer domestic abuse, rape, damage to mental wellbeing and other harms. Attempts to avoid or escape forced marriage by the person can be met with serious, sometimes fatal, violence. In 2020, the Forced Marriage Unit gave advice or support to 12 people in the North East region. This is equivalent to 2% of all reported cases of forced marriage in the UK.
(Home Office. (2021). Forced Marriage Unit Statistics 2020)

Public safety

A Plan International UK survey (2018) found that one in four girls aged 14-21 have experienced verbal harassment, including sexual comments in public places, at least once a month.
(Plan International (2020). The state of girls' rights in the UK 2019-2020)

Another study found that two out of three women aged 16 to 34 years had experienced one form of harassment in the previous 12 months. 

One in four of women aged 16 to 34 years had experienced catcalls, whistles, unwanted sexual comments or jokes in the previous 12 months, while one in three had felt like they were being followed. National data shows that one in three women felt unsafe walking alone after dark, in comparison to one in 10 men.
(ONS. (2021). Perceptions of personal safety and experience of harassment, Great Britain: 16 February to 13 March 2022.)

Overall victimisation rates for boys and girls in the past 12 months are similar: 15% boys and 14% girls. However, the type of violence by gender results in large differences. Girls were nearly five times more likely to be the victims of sexual assault compared to boys. Boys were much more likely to be the victims of robbery.

When crimes take place online, it's easier for perpetrators to remain unknown and they can carry out their abuse from anywhere. The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse found that girls are more likely than boys to be victims of online-facilitated child sexual abuse.

When we look at the criminal justice system from a gender perspective, we can see that for arrests, prosecutions, convictions, remanded in magistrates' court, immediate custodial sentence and prison population, there is a higher percentage of males compared with females.

% chart -Proportions of males and females throughout the Criminal Justice System, 2021
(Ministry of Justice. (2022). National Statistics. Women and the Criminal Justice System 2021.)

Whilst the factors that contribute to gender-based violence are complex, the risk of it occurring in the first place has been linked to attitudes toward gender roles, both at an individual and societal level. At an individual level, it's been found that unfair and unjust gender beliefs and permissive attitudes about violence against women are important risk factors for male perpetration of violence. At a societal level, and in terms of over-arching social norms, societies that tolerate violence and inequality are associated with an increased risk of violence against women and girls.

Effective prevention must include early intervention to attempt to influence these values in childhood and adolescence, as well as shifting social norms to become less accepting of violence and inequality. Interventions that challenge social norms aim to prevent violence by making it less socially acceptable.

Having safe and secure communities also encourages more people to exercise, socialise or adopt more sustainable lifestyles (for example; using public transport) and reduces social isolation. The Home Office Safer Streets Fund supports local areas to improve the safety of public spaces for all, with a particular focus on addressing violence against women and girls and improving women's safety. In Gateshead, we want to make public places safer. We want women and girls to feel safe. We want to promote women's safety and encourage reporting. We want to co-design, and deliver interventions with key partners across the public and voluntary sector based on the insights from women and girls in the area and taking a public health approach to attitude and behaviour change.

Safer Streets

Northumbria's Safer Streets project is looking at the night-time economy and the safety of public places across the region, with a focus on developing safer routes home for women and girls. 

There has been anecdotal evidence from services and residents that underpasses are 'unnerving' and cause people to feel unsafe. As part of the Safer Streets project, Gateshead has identified two underpasses, close to the town centre and connecting routes to Quayside and Newcastle, for improvement such as better lighting, signage and decoration. 

Gateshead Community Safety Survey 

Our Community Safety team has launched a new online survey to understand how residents feel about public safety in Gateshead. Using a map-based tool you can mark where you feel unsafe, tell us why and suggest what we can do to help people feel safer in our public spaces.

Gateshead Community Safety Survey will help us understand people's feelings of safety in Gateshead so that we can work together to improve community safety. We particularly welcome the views of women who live, work and visit the borough.

White Ribbon Accreditation

Gateshead Council is committed to working to end men's violence against women by becoming White Ribbon Accredited. White Ribbon is a global campaign that encourages people, especially men and boys, to both individually and collectively act and change the behaviour and culture that leads to abuse and violence. 

As an accredited organisation, we will develop and deliver a comprehensive action plan to change the cultures that lead to abuse and violence and promote gender equality. Actions include the development of a domestic abuse policy for employees and appointing volunteer White Ribbon Champions to carry the message out to more men through their professional networks and local communities.
(White Ribbon UK. (2022). White Ribbon Campaign. https://www.whiteribbon.org.uk/ (opens new window))

The Domestic Abuse Team offer free and confidential advice to medium and high-risk domestic abuse victims who live in the Gateshead area and their children. Workers from the team identify risk factors, empower victims to make informed choices, and promote strategies that manage and reduce risk.

Examples of support include:

• Short term safety planning, such as crisis intervention
• Longer term safety planning
• Access to target hardening (security measures)
• Facilitating access to housing
• Support during criminal proceedings
• Facilitating access to legal advice regarding civil remedies
• Referral to other agencies dependent on individual needs
• Attending relevant meetings, including multi-agency risk assessment conferences where professionals share information on high-risk cases and develop risk management plans
• Enhancing victim knowledge of domestic abuse dynamics/tactics
• Empowering victims to make informed choices that enhance their safety
• Working within a wider training pool to deliver domestic abuse training courses
• Direct work with children

'Although the service is open to both male and female victims, due to the prevalence of violence against women, particularly those at high risk of significant harm or homicide, 85-90% of clients receiving support from the Domestic Abuse Team are women.'

'In addition to the individual support we provide to those who have experienced domestic abuse, we are also involved in a range of partnerships in order to promote a coordinated, multi-agency approach to addressing and reducing the occurrence of domestic abuse across Gateshead.'

'We also deliver a number of group work programmes which raise awareness of the tactics employed by abusive partners, and warning signs that a relationship may be unhealthy.'

'In addition, the team also has a Behaviour Change Programme which is open to abusive partners who recognise their behaviour and wish to address this.'

'To tackle these issues, there needs to be ongoing and additional work to raise the public awareness of domestic abuse and how to support victims, greater education with children and young people and more early intervention work for both victims and abusive partners.

Chapter 6: Strengthen the role and impact of ill health prevention