“Her, Me and It” Project provides powerful series of workshops for young people
“Hi, Fi a’r Peth / Her, Me and It” is a ground-breaking project by Aberystwyth-based theatre company Awaken Productions and funded by The National Lottery Community Fund, designed to share the stories of people who have experienced sexual violence and raise awareness for young people. The project has included development of an original script for stage with the input of young people and the community, focus group sessions, the development of the script into a film for schools and youth groups in collaboration with AMP Media, professional development opportunities and a final series of workshops offered in Welsh and in English.
The final workshops offered groups of young people the opportunity to talk about the language surrounding sexual violence, as well as seeing previews of material from the upcoming film. It provided a safe spaces for people to share their thoughts and experiences, as well as celebrating the powerful and often hidden courage shown by people who have experienced sexual violence. Participation was largely discussion based, allowing young people to share differences in opinion and reactions to the film, as well as providing information about support organisations available.
The sessions received largely positive feedback, with many saying they had never been to a workshop like this before and now felt more confident to talk about this difficult subject with others. Anna Sherratt, the project manager said “This has been a wonderful opportunity for sharing and healing, as well as for raising awareness. We’re very grateful to all the amazing young people and community members who participated in the project for your courage and generosity during the sessions. It is clear that this kind of work is sadly rare and yet very much needed in our communities if we wish to reduce the high rates of sexual violence and barriers to support faced by those who have experienced it.”
In the year to the end of March 2017, the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) estimated: 20% of women and 4% of men have experienced some type of sexual assault since the age of 16 and in 2018, young people represented 35% of Rape Crisis service users. Awaken were proud to have made connections with New Pathways (Rape Crisis and Sexual Abuse Support services) and members of Dyfed Powys Police during the project, and hope to continue working with other organisations to continue raising awareness surrounding sexual violence. The film, due for release in 2022, will serve as a legacy for the project and will be offered to schools and youth groups across Wales as a resource alongside another series of workshops, building on the work that already took place during the “Her, Me and It” project.