When I heard that the police would be holding free self-defence classes for women in Abbots Langley, the cynic in me kicked in.
Since the murders of Sarah Everard and Sabina Nessa, violence against women has been in the spotlight more than ever, and rightly so.
But shouldn’t the focus be on prevention?
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Of course, it should. But, as one of the women who attended the session on May 24 reminded me, we don’t’ live in a perfect world.
Sophie Evans, 26, from Watford, said: “There is never going to be an ideal world. We will never ever live in a perfect society, but by doing these measures we are trying to protect ourselves.”
Out teacher, martial arts expert Kate Barry, began by ensuring we walked confidently with our heads held high. She said that the more alert we are the easier it is for us to spot any signs of potential danger.
During the session, we were taught several techniques to stop someone from chocking us, what to do if we were grabbed from behind or are attacked with a knife.
Ms Evans, who went with her mum and sister, said: “It’s amazing that you can use your body to defend yourself and that’s not something that I’ve ever looked into or understood.”
The session, held at Tanners Wood Hall, was for all women aged 18 and over.
One of the 15 attendees, Wendy Richardson, aged 66 from Leavesden, told me how important sessions like this were. She had been attacked when she was 18, and while she was able to get away, she still feels vulnerable.
She said: “I am small and feel quite vulnerable. This helped my confidence. The training was good.”
Lorreine Kennedy, 60 from Leavesden, said she found the session to be useful.
She added: “I think teenagers, children and even boys would benefit from this.”
The classes are being held by Abbots Langley Safer Neighbourhood Team, which has partnered with Abbots Langley Parish Council and Three Rivers District Council.
Sergeant Jon Brown, who was running the sessions, didn’t shy away from acknowledging the lack of trust members of the public have in the police.
He said: “After what happened to Sarah Everard we are trying to re-build some of the lost faith in the police service and this forms part of that. I fully accept we need to do more to tackle violence against women, and this is just one strand of what we are trying to do.”
Despite my initial concerns, there was never any victim blaming. Of course, we all know that it is highly unlikely that any of these techniques would have helped Sarah or Sabina, but if they help just one woman, it is better than nothing.
It was an hour well spent, that has made me feel a little bit safer and the suggestion to download the free Hollie Guard app that lets family members know your location is something I will be doing.
Hopefully, none of us will ever have to put these new skills into use.
The remaining classes will be held on:
- 31 May
- 7 June
- 21 June
Contact SNTAbbotsLangley@herts.police.uk if you would like to attend.
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