Greater Manchester charity develops training to help businesses spot signs of domestic abuse

Independent Choices – a Greater Manchester based charity supporting victims and survivors of domestic abuse and violence – is offering training to businesses across the city-region to help them better support employees in the workplace.

The organisation is developing the training suite for businesses after accessing the city-region’s Skills for Growth programme.

Independent Choices GM is now gearing up to launch the training, which they have ambitions to roll out this summer to businesses of all sizes. The charity hopes its new offer will help Greater Manchester businesses spot the signs of domestic abuse and how to be aware if a victim and perpetrator work in the same place.

Hayley Brewer, manager of Independent Choices GM said:

“ONS data tells us that for the year ending March 2020, an estimated 1.6 million women aged 16 to 74 years experienced domestic abuse.

“We also know that the pandemic has impacted domestic violence. Of course, we want to support and educate as many businesses as possible but we’re really keen to break into the bigger organisations as they have the largest staff base and are therefore likely to have more employees in need of support, if you think about the statistics.”

The launch of domestic abuse training for businesses follows the Greater Manchester charity’s accessing of the SME Support arm of the Skills for Growth programme in 2021. Helpline staff at Independent Choices were offered free mental health and wellbeing support to better manage the increased call volume received during the Covid-19 pandemic through the scheme. Hayley explained:

“As a charity, we don’t have the funding for expensive professional development so the fact the training was free allowed us to give our employees access to an opportunity they wouldn’t have otherwise had access to.

“I received really positive feedback from staff – they said they felt valued and heard thanks to the individual development plans. We’ve done a lot of mental health work in the past because we can deal with some really traumatic incidents but it’s always useful to refresh this knowledge, especially during such an uncertain time, so staff can look after themselves and also offer the best advice to their clients.

“We decided to access a 26-week programme of support, which can sound daunting but the whole process has been really manageable and our skills coach has been easy to talk to and approachable.

“The support is ongoing now too. Our coach has been clear that they can help with other opportunities moving forward and that’s how the training suite came about. SME Support can help connect us with businesses that would benefit from this type of guidance.”

Speaking about the guidance offered to Independent Choices, Janine Richardson, Programme Manager at Skills For Growth – SME Support, which is delivered by GC Business Growth Hub said:

“The work that Independent Choices GM does is hugely important and we know that demand for its services has risen during the pandemic. The support we have offered business and its staff during this critical period is a great example of how we tailor activity to address a business’ specific needs, building resilience during challenging times.

“We encourage businesses who are interested in benefiting from the programme to apply on our website.”

Skills for Growth is Greater Manchester Combined Authority’s three-year programme aimed at plugging skills gaps employers in Greater Manchester have struggled to fill, funded through the European Social Fund.