Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to encourage schools to raise awareness of the risk of forced marriage and honour-based abuse, and of the availability of preventive measures.

The government is committed to tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG). We are helping to end violence at home and abroad by allowing women to check their partner’s criminal history, introducing domestic violence protection orders, criminalising forced marriage and introducing a new offence of domestic abuse. We will strengthen victims’ rights further, with a new Victims’ Law that will enshrine key rights for victims. The previous government ring-fenced £40 million to VAWG services - £10 million per year, specifically for refuges. The government has committed to continuing that funding up to April 2016.

Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) statutory guidance, issued by the Department for Education, outlines to schools and colleges their roles and responsibilities with regard to safeguarding their pupils. The department makes it clear that schools and colleges play a significant role in early identification of abuse and preventing concerns from escalating.

KCSIE signposts school staff to specific forced marriage information and guidelines produced by the Forced Marriage Unit (FMU). This information provides an overview of forced marriage, together with FMU contact details for further information and advice.

KCSIE also signposts schools to further information on faith abuse: the ‘National action plan to tackle child abuse linked to faith or belief’. This action plan serves to help raise awareness of the issue of child abuse linked to faith or belief, including honour based violence and forced marriage. The action plan encourages practical steps to be taken to prevent such abuse.

KCSIE recognises that forced marriage and honour based violence are safeguarding concerns. The guidance makes clear that any concerns identified by staff should be raised and discussed with the school’s designated safeguarding lead and escalated to children’s social care as appropriate.

Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education, and Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) are curriculum subjects that may be used to raise pupil awareness of forced marriage and honour-based abuse. To support teaching in these areas, the PSHE Association has produced guidance for teaching about consent, covering the importance of building healthy relationships, as well as giving young people the confidence and knowledge about staying safe and respecting others. It also supports the government’s ‘This is Abuse’ campaign, which helps educate young people about damaging behaviours within relationships.