I’ve spent the past two Sundays with my colleague Debbie Abrahams attending inspiring meetings with groups of Labour women. This weekend Debbie and I were invited to Stalybridge and Hyde, to a women’s forum attended by around 60 women who’ve been getting together every couple of months since the middle of last year. Last Sunday, a group of women members in Oldham, who are also hoping to establish a women’s forum, had invited us to join them there. Stalybridge and Hyde women came along to that meeting to share their experiences too.
In my own constituency of Stretford and Urmston, meanwhile, local women are also establishing a new women’s forum, while the other Trafford constituencies already have forums underway. In fact, women’s forums are cropping up all over our region, and the country as a whole. It seems that there’s a new surge of energy among our women members and supporters, that women are becoming more determined, angry and energised. Perhaps that’s not surprising when we remember the harsh effect on women of the Tory-led government’s cuts.
Some weeks ago, before the women’s conference in Liverpool, I argued that there’s a need for women to self-organise, and all this shows very clearly that there’s an appetite to do so too. This is important because women’s life experiences help us shape a distinct political agenda, help improve policy, and help us win support. At the meetings I’ve attended recently, I’ve been using three examples from my own constituency to explain what I mean.
Holding listening events with local women over the summer, it became very obvious to me that personal safety when out and about is a real concern. At one such meeting, women talked about an underpass to the local shopping centre and the metro stop close to where I live – it’s dark, covered in graffiti, and with the entrances surrounded by large and overgrown shrubs. I hate going down there after dark, it turns out many local women agree with me – and a campaign is born.
In my surgeries, meanwhile, I’ve had a number of pregnant women coming to seek my help. They’re homeless, and desperate to find a place before their baby is born. Any woman will understand that you’d want to get a home sorted before your baby arrives, do up the baby’s bedroom, get yourself settled in. So I was very surprised to discover that our local housing association wouldn’t prioritise these women for housing until after the birth. I didn’t think this was good enough, and got onto the housing association to demand it change its allocations policy. I’m very pleased that they’ve agreed to do so, and pregnant women will now be prioritised for housing a few months before their due date.
And finally, just yesterday I attended a coffee morning with a group of Muslim women in my constituency, and, as is so often the way these days, the conversation turned to public spending cuts. I already knew leisure services were facing cuts, and now these women told me that women-only swimming sessions had been axed. For many women from their communities, that means they can no longer go for a swim, shutting them out from a social activity they enjoyed, and that benefited their health.
Now, I’m not saying that men in our party won’t share my concern about these matters, agree there’s a need for action, and support our campaigning too. But it’s women speaking to women that has brought the issues to the fore. Policy impacts women differently, demands particular solutions – and women notice this.
This isn’t about excluding men, but rather about understanding that a gender perspective can enrich and expand our policy response. And that matters for our electoral prospects, nationally and locally, too. Let’s not forget that, for decades, it would have been better for Labour in elections if women stayed at home. But by 2005, it was women’s votes that were winning the general election for Labour, responding to what the party had done to improve their lives – through policies like the national childcare strategy, national minimum wage and new maternity rights. Gender politics matter, and they turn into Labour votes.
So far from regretting or apologising for the rise of dedicated women’s forums, I see them as a source of local intelligence, information, campaigning, and electoral success. That’s why I’ll be doing all I can to support women across our party who want to self-organise to set up local forums over the coming months. Men’s support is of course wanted, welcome, and appreciated too. But in allowing women time to meet, speak, plan and share together, we bring strength to our party, and to our message, and help to improve the quality of life for everyone.
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Kate Green is MP for Stretford and Urmston and writes a weekly column or Progress, Kate Comments
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“women talked about an underpass to the local shopping centre and the metro stop close to where I live – it’s dark, covered in graffiti, and with the entrances surrounded by large and overgrown shrubs”
Objectives within Community Safety Strategies prevent this or would if they actually were worth the paper they were written on and the fear is as equal for men and children.
There is also as much concern by men towards women.
As ‘a man’ I regularly contact our council and demand action is taken, I’ve even had my ugly mug in the paper standing up for the community (men women children) and it really really knarks me when some believe this is just a ‘women’s only’ issue or that it only comes to the fore if it’s talked about separately.
I was at a training session on Saturday. The most vocal people on it where the women if I were Kate I’d be focussed on establishing why the opportunities she feels don’t exist in general forums exist and deal with it not look at ways to maintain the separation.