6. Interview with Farah Nazeer, CEO of Women's Aid

Send us Fan MailThe VIEW Magazine CiC PresentsRebel Justice Podcasts : Episode 6: Interview with Farah Nazeer, THE CEO of Women's AidOur sixth Rebel Justice podcast features Farah Nazeer the CEO of Women's Aid and our own Narince Erkan, a law student and president of our University Rebell Justice Societies. They take a deep dive into services for women trapped in the criminal justice system who have been victims of abuse and let down by the agencies meant to support them. Our women.Having experience in working with human rights in Europe, and also international development in the Global South, Farah Nazeer talks to us about her vision for Women’s Aid, its perspective, goals, and the crucial services they provide.54% of women have been victims of abuse prior to entering custody, important questions need to be asked, about how EVAWG  organisations or agencies are failing our women.Working with specialist providers as well as community services, Women’s Aid works with and represents a number of organisations to address issues such as domestic abuse, minoritised women, disabled women and more. Women's Aid is well known for providing services such as chat forums, emails and direct services for survivors. Their No Women Turned Away Project provides a direct service to help women who have faced barriers accessing refuge. Women's Aid also provides policy and advocacy, campaigning, for funding policy and frameworks.A more holistic approach is recommended when working with women in the justice system. 50% of women say they have been victims of domestic abuse as adults and as children according to the Ministry of Justice's own statistics.  This begs the question why women are finding themselves in CJS in the first place, and a service driven response needs to be implemented. Otherwise without early intervention, what do women end up turning to, and what circumstance do they find themselves in if they have no support?After prison, to end the cycle of abuse, we need specialist services, a pathway to multifaceted and a holistic approach. Economic support, support for families and children must be in place to provide safe space, and to support and strengthen their mental health. Women with complex needs Need specialist services as not all services can meet needs for women with multiple or greater needs.The No Women Turned Away project supports women with barriers to accessing refuge, due to criminal convictions, in particular, Women's Aid encourages women to be referred to refuge accommodation through this   project.Future plans for Women’s Aid includes continuing campaigning for a Statutory Defence, where an offence is driven by abuse which was unfortunately neglected.They will also protest against the 500 new prison places for women, this money can be better used to fund community services for women instead, or mental health or other preventative measures. Women’s Aid aims to change the context and cultural awareness around domestic abuse and what was broadly acceptable to make it completely intolerable.Nothing will change unless we have a shared understanding, a shift in society's approach to domestic abuse, until every single survivor gets the service she needs.Every single pinch point that a survivor might encounter, must be absolutely geared towards and able to identify abuse and respond to it.Support the showFor more unmissable content from The View sign up here