This Conference welcomes the work of Platform 51(the operating name of the YWCA England & Wales), and YWCA Scotland, to support girls and young women as they seek to achieve their potential. This Conference believes that the possibility for joint work with these bodies deserves to be explored in order to identify joint campaigning opportunities […]
Conference motions
Conference acknowledges that many of the cuts in public services have hit rural communities, already poorly served, harder than urban areas. Women who are already on lower incomes and reliant on diminishing benefits and public services are particularly disadvantaged. A recent survey conducted in the South West revealed that women are more likely to be […]
The Government’s proposed Universal Credit scheme, one of their flagship policies, is intended to consolidate benefits and tax credits into one single payment, thereby reducing complexity and administration costs significantly. The Government claim is that the new scheme will provide a greater incentive for people on benefits to work and ensure that they do not […]
Endometriosis is a condition in which tissue similar to the womb lining is found outside the uterus. It affects an estimated 10% of women of childbearing age and has affected girls as young as 11 years. Its cause is unknown and diagnosis difficult and for those who suffer from the condition it can be chronic […]
The recent submission by women’s groups to the Leveson inquiry highlighted the relentless sexual objectification of women and girls in the press while topics such as rape and trafficking continue to be trivialised and made into a joke and women are still being blamed for being sexually assaulted. Actress and author Lucy Holmes is creator […]
Conference notes with concern that the Government wants to increase the state pension age to 68. This will mean that the United Kingdom will have the highest retirement age in Europe. The proposed changes to the state pension age are disproportionately impacting on the lives of women. The accelerated state pension age rise for women […]
Conference notes with concern that in September 2012 the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council adopted a resolution from Russia which linked human rights to ‘traditional values’ by a vote of 25 in favour and 15 against, with 7 states abstaining. This resolution was an unmistakable attempt to try to block the progress of women’s […]
Conference condemns the ongoing political drive to increase the proportion of domiciliary care jobs, which are done by women, being outsourced to the private sector. All the evidence shows that the privatisation of domiciliary care services results in reduced service provision to the most vulnerable and the reduction in the terms and conditions of our […]
Women are being doubly hit by the economic down turn and essential services are at risk of closure as a result of this government’s policies. Women’s organisations in the third sector are large employers of women and their closure leads to a loss of specialist knowledge and expertise as well as jobs and services for […]
Conference, 80% of women and girls in the UK are not playing enough sport or doing enough exercise to benefit their health. The success of Team GB’s women athletes at London 2012 was inspirational. With the exception of Jess Ennis or Victoria Pendleton how many others are household names? From participation in grassroots sport to […]
In a number of work places gender specific illnesses/conditions are dealt with outside the absence/sickness policies. This type of forward thinking for conditions ie IVF, hysterectomy, gynaecological problems, to name but a few. These conditions mainly affect women and are in the one-off illnesses from which most women recover completely. It would therefore save time […]
Conference notes that the Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is wanted in Sweden to face allegations of rape and sexual assault. Conference further notes that a UK Court approved the extradition of Assange to Sweden to face allegations of rape and sexual assault, but that he has now been granted asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in […]
This conference is aghast at the negative and relentless attacks on women perpetrated by this Tory led coalition government. Women face attacks on their employment, their terms and conditions, increasingly unaffordable costs of childcare, cuts to working families tax credits, housing, welfare provision, and sure start to name but a few. In addition, the National […]
This Conference notes: The strategy by the Con Dem coalition to reduce the deficit is having a detrimental effect on the whole of society; however, the main impact of these cuts affects women. The proposed changes to Welfare Reform will see family slide further into poverty, women will find themselves in the predicament of either […]
This Conference notes: Domestic Abuse takes many forms. However, the issue of Forced Marriage and Honour Based Violence places women, children and vulnerable adults at risk of rape, physical and mental harm and can end in murder. There is a huge difference between Arranged Marriages and Forced Marriages and we must be able to ensure […]