PCC Hosts Safeguarding Conference To Strengthen Response To Violence & Abuse Against Women And Girls

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PCC Hosts Major Safeguarding & Exploitation Conference To Take Action To Strengthen Merseyside’s Response To Violence Against Women And Girls

Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner, Emily Spurrell hosting the Safeguarding & Exploitation Conference (Credit: Supplied/Image was provided to The Liverpudlian with permission to share, courtesy of the Publicist on behalf of their client. We make no claim to this content).

Professionals from across Merseyside have come together for a major multi‑agency training event, the Safeguarding and Exploitation Conference, hosted by the Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner, as part of her ongoing work to take action to prevent and tackle violence and abuse.

The Merseyside Safeguarding and Exploitation Training Event brought together frontline practitioners, specialist charities and policing teams to strengthen the region’s collective approach to identifying exploitation, protecting vulnerable people and addressing emerging forms of abuse, including tech‑enabled Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG).

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Hosted by the PCC, Emily Spurrell, and Deputy PCC, Cllr Jeanie Bell, the session yesterday (Tuesday the 31^st of March) focused on supporting improvements in safeguarding practice, raising awareness of new and emerging risks, and helping professionals respond more effectively to VAWG in all its forms.

Equipping professionals with the skills and training to respond to VAWG, is a key commitment the PCC’s region-wide strategy – Working in partnership to tackling VAWG across Merseyside – to end VAWG co-signed by more than 50 partners across the region.

It also builds on her ongoing Taking Action campaign with Merseyside Police which is focused on raising awareness and understanding of the red flags of sexual violence, abuse and exploitation.

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Attendees from across policing, health, education, local authorities, housing, and the voluntary sector took part in a comprehensive programme of training delivered by leading organisations, including:

• Reign Collective CIC, providing specialist insight into how young people are groomed, coerced and exploited, and how professionals can intervene early.

• Merseyside Police’s dedicated Modern Slavery team, Operation Sanctuary, sharing intelligence on identifying exploitation, offender behaviour and local safeguarding challenges.

• MSI Choices, offering insight into specialist health services and advice on referral pathways.

• Barnardo’s, presenting their Independent Child Trafficking Guardianship service and outlining their partnership work to protect vulnerable children across Merseyside.

• Merseyside Police’s Cyber Team, briefing attendees on cyber‑enabled VAWG, online grooming, and the ways offenders increasingly use digital tools to target victims.

The event reinforced the importance of a joined‑up, trauma‑informed approach to safeguarding, with policing, health, education, local authorities and voluntary organisations all working together to improve outcomes for vulnerable people.

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Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner, Emily Spurrell, said: “This region-wide training event is another important step in taking action against violence and abuse across Merseyside.

Commissioner Spurrell, said: “We know that exploitation doesn’t sit neatly in one category – it can be offline, online, in homes, schools, workplaces or digital spaces.

She said: “No single organisation can tackle exploitation or VAWG alone. Bringing agencies together in one room is vital to continuing to improve our response to vulnerability, ensuring we are joined‑up, consistent and able to act quickly when concerns are raised.

The Commissioner added: “This event was designed to give professionals on the frontline of protecting our most vulnerable the tools and confidence they need to recognise the signs, intervene early, and respond in a way that strengthens our collective ability to keep women and girls safe.”

(Credit: Supplied/Image was provided to The Liverpudlian with permission to share, courtesy of the Publicist on behalf of their client. We make no claim to this content).

This latest training session forms part of the PCC’s wider programme of activity to take action against VAWG, improve early intervention, enhance frontline knowledge and ensure victims receive timely, appropriate support.