Early conversations in schools are key to preventing men’s violence against women and girls

Considering recent government plans to ban sex education for youth under nine years of age, White Ribbon UK strongly encourages decisionmakers to allow young people the opportunity to foster healthy traits that will enable them to develop and maintain healthy and respectful relationships.

Under the Istanbul Convention, a human rights treaty that aims to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence, the UK has a legal commitment to implement measures that promote “changes in the social and cultural patterns of behaviour of women and men.”

In addition to this emphasis on prevention via behaviour change, the Convention underscores the importance of education. Parties are expected to take the necessary measures to provide “teaching material on issues such as equality between women and men, non-stereotyped gender roles, mutual respect, non-violent conflict resolution in interpersonal relationships, gender-based violence against women and the right to personal integrity, adapted to the evolving capacity of learners, in formal curricula and at all levels of education.”

Education settings are vital to this work to end violence against women and girls and create opportunities for early intervention. These spaces are all the more important given that more and more young people are turning to online sources for information related to relationships, sex and sexuality. Young people themselves are also overwhelmingly in favour of earlier education; 74% of females and 54% of males surveyed in the Young People’s RSE Poll 2024 believe primary school curriculum should address how to challenge stereotypical ideas about how boys and girls should behave.

Boys and girls must have the tools to understand and recognise abuse and inequality. The national curriculum must educate people, especially young men and boys, about the issue of violence against women so as to affect meaningful culture change that will lead to a safer, more inclusive society.

White Ribbon UK is at the forefront of promoting and developing the implementation of articles 12.1 and 12.4 in the Istanbul Convention which reference the need to implement measures to promote behaviour and culture change, especially amongst men and boys.

12.1 Parties shall take the necessary measures to promote changes in the social and cultural patterns of behaviour of women and men with a view to eradicating prejudices, customs, traditions and all other practices which are based on the idea of the inferiority of women or on stereotyped roles for women and men.

12.4 Parties shall take the necessary measures to encourage all members of society, especially men and boys, to contribute actively to preventing all forms of violence covered by the scope of this Convention

14.1 Parties shall take, where appropriate, the necessary steps to include teaching material on issues such as equality between women and men, non-stereotyped gender roles, mutual respect, non-violent conflict resolution in interpersonal relationships, gender-based violence against women and the right to personal integrity, adapted to the evolving capacity of learners, in formal curricula and at all levels of education.

We envision a gender-equal society in which all women and girls are free from the fear of violence and the threat of this fear of violence. The only way to eradicate violence against women and girls is by transforming harmful attitudes and behaviours that perpetuate violence and inequality.

Last year, White Ribbon UK released ‘Building Gender Equality for Young People: A White Ribbon UK Learning Resource’ to give education providers the knowledge and tools to introduce the concepts of gender and inequality to their students in a way that it safe and meaningful. 

A core purpose of this learning resource is to ensure that boys and girls can learn in a child-centred and age-appropriate learning environment. This requires an approach that encompasses the whole school and community to break down systemic prejudices, stereotypes and expectations, including negative traits around what it means to be a man or a woman, so children can challenge and reject words and actions that put others at risk of violence and marginalisation.

As the UK’s leading charity working to engage men and boys to end violence against women and girls, White Ribbon UK urges the government to uphold their obligations under the Istanbul Convention to support children in learning healthy relationships, at all levels of education, so we can prevent violence against women and girls from happening in the first place.