The Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster is calling on small businesses in Birmingham to help tackle domestic and sexual abuse.
PCC Simon Foster is working with companies to make sure they know how to signpost potential victims to support services and how to respond if they suspect a member of their staff is being harmed at home.
The PCC also wants businesses to ensure they provide the right physical or online spaces in which to have confidential conversations with staff they might be concerned are at risk of harm.
Tackling violence against women and girls is one of the Commissioner’s top priorities.
The campaign called ‘Things we can do’ acknowledges that small businesses are often at very different stages in terms of being ready to offer support.
This has improved in the years since that research was published, but there are many businesses that are yet to formalise their response to disclosures of abuse.
The eight simple tips shared in the campaign draw on the West Midlands Domestic Abuse and Sexual Assault and Abuse Standards and provide clear guidance on what businesses, regardless of size, should consider.
This includes identifying roles and responsibilities, signposting support services, and providing the right physical/online spaces in which to have confidential conversations.
The Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster, said: “We know that business owners want to play their part in supporting staff and customers who report domestic or sexual abuse, but it can be particularly challenging for small businesses to know where to start.
“A lot of the guidance that exists is tailored towards larger organisations, or to pubs, clubs, and bars. Translating that guidance into actions that a small business can take is not always easy –so we’ve developed some steps to help those who want to make changes to their workplace.
“Fundamentally we want to support those small businesses who ask ‘what can we do?’.”
Nicola Fleet-Milne is CEO of FleetMilne, the Birmingham-based letting agency and estate agents, and Chair of the Colmore BID Board.
She said: “Safety continues to be a top priority at FleetMilne. Our team travel across the city daily and we have implemented a range of steps – both practical interventions and in workplace culture, to help support them.”
“We appreciate business owners have differing needs in this space, and consistent guidelines from the local authority and the Police and Crime Commissioner are a good starting point in addressing this issue.”