Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which organisations bid for money under the female genital mutilation (FGM) Community Engagement Initiative 2014; which organisations were successful in their bids and how much they received as a result; what assessment she has made of how successful each project was in terms of (a) raising awareness about socio-cultural, ethnic-legal, sexual health and clinical implications, (b) strengthening the voice of communities speaking out against FGM and (c) creating new opportunities to talk about FGM.

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a crime. We will not tolerate a practice that can cause extreme and lifelong physical and psychological suffering to women and girls.

In 2014/15, the Home Office provided over £100,000 to community organisations through the FGM Community Engagement Initiative. The fund was open to organisations across the UK to bid for up to £10,000 to carry out community work to raise awareness of FGM.

The 12 projects included work to build the confidence of women and communities to speak out against FGM and raise awareness of the potential health, social and cultural implications.

The evaluations show that nearly 6,000 people were engaged in a variety of activities designed to raise awareness about FGM and strengthen the voices of communities. Feedback from participants demonstrated increased awareness of the context, manifestation and harm caused by FGM. A list of the organisations funded is provided below: