Violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence (VAWDASV) educational toolkit

This toolkit is designed for any professional working in a school setting across Wales, as well as governors and parents or carers of learners. 

Violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence (VAWDASV) are serious, complex and sensitive issues which have wide reaching implications for children and young people across Wales and the education settings they access.

The Welsh Government has adopted the following definitions in the Violence against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act 2015 (the Act). 

Domestic abuse is physical, sexual, psychological, emotional or financial abuse where the victim is or has been associated with the abuser. 

Gender-based violence is violence, threats of violence or harassment arising directly or indirectly from values, beliefs or customs relating to gender or sexual orientation, female genital mutilation and forced marriage. 

Sexual violence includes sexual exploitation, sexual harassment, or threats of violence of a sexual nature. 

It is important to note that emotional abuse and coercive control are common within all forms of abuse. The Act focuses on how Welsh Ministers and the public sector in Wales can prevent harms from happening, protect those who have experienced it, and support those affected. 

The National VAWDASV strategy 2022 to 2026 introduced 6 objectives to further the purpose of the Act. Objective 2 is to:

increase awareness in children, young people and adults of the importance of safe, equal and healthy relationships and empowering them to positive personal choices.

The Welsh Government is committed to working in partnership across Wales to ensure that children and young people can access timely and appropriate support wherever they are, including in education settings. Importantly, children are now recognised in law as victims of domestic abuse in their own right, following the implementation of Section 3 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, which came into force on 31 January 2022. This legal provision states that a child under 18 who sees, hears, or experiences the effects of domestic abuse, is to be regarded as a victim.

Guidance from The Crown Prosecution Service highlights that regardless of whether they were physically present during the incident. This recognition ensures that children and young people affected by domestic abuse are entitled to support and protection, and that their experiences are considered within safeguarding and justice processes. Education settings have a vital role in identifying and responding to these impacts with sensitivity and care. 

Unfortunately, a substantial number of children and young people in education settings are currently experiencing or have previously experienced Violence against Women and girls, domestic abuse and/or sexual violence. While each experience is unique, the impact of abuse or trauma can be profound and long-lasting, particularly when it occurs during childhood. Exposure to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), such as domestic abuse, can affect every aspect of a young person’s life, including their emotional wellbeing, ability to form healthy relationships, and engagement with education.

Recent evidence highlights the scale of the issue. In 2024, the Youth Endowment Fund reported that 33% of 13 to 17-year-olds had encountered online content promoting violence against women and girls. Police data from England and Wales recorded over 1 million violent crimes against women and girls in 2022 to 2023, a 37% increase since 2018.

Schools are not only places of learning, they are also environments where children and young people form relationships, develop social norms, and begin to understand what acceptable and respectful behaviour is. However, research has shown that many learners are regularly exposed to harmful behaviours in these settings. A 2021 Ofsted review found widespread sexual harassment and abuse in schools and colleges, often seen by learners as a normal part of daily life. Supporting this, the Estyn report found that around half of all pupils say they have personal experience of peer-on-peer sexual harassment, and 3 quarters report witnessing other pupils experiencing it. The Estyn report We Don’t Tell Our Teachers highlights the experiences of peer-on-peer sexual harassment amongst secondary pupils in Wales.

Often, however, schools can provide an environment which in some cases feels safer than home and provides opportunity for children and young people to disclose their experiences of abuse or violence at home. Schools are uniquely positioned to model respectful relationships and provide a safe environment where children, young people, and their families can seek advice and support. Children and young people spend such a significant part of their lives in school, education settings are crucial in identifying potential harms and challenges and preventing abuse before it escalates. 

Domestic abuse can affect children and young people in deeply personal and lasting ways. According to Refuge, 1 in 5 children in the UK have lived in a household where an adult was perpetrating domestic abuse. These experiences can shape their emotional development, sense of safety, and ability to trust others.

Violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence is preventable, it is not inevitable.

This section may be updated periodically to reflect emerging themes and issues that schools may wish to explore further.

Misogyny and gender-based harassment

Schools are facing a range of challenges, including a rise in misogynistic language and stereotypes amongst students which impacts attitudes and perpetuates harmful gender stereotypes. 

Misogyny is the term used to define hatred and prejudice against women and girls, often rooted in the belief that men are superior. These harmful attitudes can manifest in various ways, physically, verbally, emotionally, or through peer-on-peer abuse. In schools, this might include the casual use of sexualised or degrading language, dismissive behaviour towards peers or staff, or jokes that trivialise violence against women and girls. 

However, misogyny is not confined to the classroom. Gender-based harassment can occur in any public space, including but not limited to public transport, online, or the journey to and from school. It can include unwanted comments, gestures, intimidation and behaviours that target someone based on their gender. These experiences can have a substantial impact on young people’s sense of safety, confidence and wellbeing. 

While many of these issues are deeply entrenched in wider social and cultural systems, there is growing evidence that social media is fuelling the spread. Children and young people are increasingly exposed to harmful influences online, including from so-called ‘influencers’ who promote misogynistic views and behaviours. The growth of ‘manosphere’ communities which broadcast aggressive views about women can shape attitudes and influence behaviours in classrooms, at home and online. Schools have an important role in fostering respectful, inclusive environments and equipping learners with the tools to challenge harmful norms. 

Terms such as misogyny and toxic masculinity are widely used across the VAWDASV sector to describe harmful gendered attitudes and behaviours. However, it is recognised that some practitioners, particularly those working closely with boys and young men, prefer to use language that focuses on promoting positive behaviours and healthy masculinities. Where appropriate, schools and educators may choose to use alternative terminology that encourages engagement and reflection whilst addressing the underlying issues effectively. 

The Welsh Government published its statutory framework on embedding a whole-school approach to emotional and mental well-being in 2021. 

The Framework is intended to support schools, Special schools, pupil referral units (PRUs) and a range of education settings in reviewing their own well-being landscape whilst developing plans to address weaknesses and build on their strengths to support the well-being needs of learners. It recognises that the school or setting alone cannot meet all the needs of a complex population of children and young people and sets out the role of regional bodies, the NHS and others such as the third sector, in supporting the school or setting. The framework complements the Curriculum for Wales and in particular the health and well-being area of learning and experience. An example of this multi-agency support is Operation Encompass, a police and education partnership that enables schools to provide immediate support to children who have experienced domestic abuse. When police attend an incident involving a child or young person, they notify the school’s designated safeguarding lead before the next school day. This allows schools to respond sensitively and appropriately. 

Schools and local authorities are required to have regard to this statutory Framework and guidance when developing action plans, strategies and other policies that impact on the well-being of learners, staff and others working within the school environment. In addition, local authorities should have regard to this Framework when organising or delivering educated other than at school (EOTAS) provision.

The Wales Safeguarding Procedures detail the roles and responsibilities for practitioners to ensure that children and adults who are at risk of abuse and neglect are safeguarded. They are intended to guide good safeguarding practice for all professionals who are employed in the statutory, third or private sector. This includes education alongside health, social care, police, justice and other services.

Since 2022, relationships and sexuality education (RSE) is mandatory under the Curriculum for Wales. The mandatory RSE Code supports schools to design their provision, with content structured around three broad and interlinked learning strands:

• relationships and identity
• sexual health and well-being
• empowerment, safety and respect 

The Welsh Government has committed to ensuring that RSE covers key themes including relationships; rights and equity; sex, gender and sexuality; bodies and body image; sexual health and well-being; and violence, safety and support. These themes are interwoven across the learning strands and must be delivered in a manner which is inclusive and reflects diversity. This includes developing learners’ awareness and understanding of different identities, views and values and a diversity of relationships, gender and sexuality, including LGBTQ+ lives. A rights-based approach is embedded throughout, ensuring that learning about rights and equity runs across all strands.  

To support schools in delivering inclusive RSE, the Welsh Government have awarded funding in 2025 to STORI to lead the CWTCH Education Project, a 3 year, all-Wales initiative designed to build confidence and capacity across the education workforce.  The project will support practitioners, leaders and whole-school communities to confidently deliver high-quality RSE. 

In addition to STORI, schools can also access support through the Spectrum Project, a Welsh Government-funded initiative delivered by qualified educators across primary and secondary schools. Spectrum provides age-appropriate resources and sessions focused on healthy relationships and the impact of domestic abuse, helping schools take a while-school approach to VAWDASV in education. 

Further resources and statutory guidance are available via Hwb, the Welsh Government’s digital learning platform. Hwb hosts a wide range of materials to support curriculum design and delivery, including the RSE Code, safeguarding guidance, and professional learning tools. 

It is important to note that discussing sensitive topics under the RSE curriculum may lead to disclosures from learners. The Keeping Learners Safe guidance includes a dedicated section on responding to concerns, offering clear procedures for safeguarding. Additionally, Welsh Women’s Aid, the national charity in Wales working to end violence against women and girls, provides a directory of specialist domestic abuse and sexual violence services across Wales which can help schools and professionals identify support available in their local area. 

Sexual harassment can occur anywhere, including online. It is a societal issue, which requires a societal response. Education settings undoubtedly play a crucial role in this, educating children and young people about the importance of respectful behaviour and attitudes. Sexual harassment can also form part of a continuum of behaviours that enables abuse to manifest through shaping social norms and problematic cultures. In 2024 the Welsh Government published the Peer on Peer Sexual Harassment in Education Settings Action Plan which outlines key actions around the following themes:

• prevention
• early intervention
• learner support and wellbeing
• professional learning and leadership
• parents, carers and the community
• addressing sexual harassment in the online context
• research and evaluation 

To support implementation, a range of external experts and partners are working with school staff and young people to develop solutions to address peer-on-peer sexual harassment in education settings, ensuring that the learners' voices remain central to this ongoing work. This is a 'live' document that will continue to evolve in response to emerging challenges. 

In 2022 the Welsh Government published the most recent iteration of the Keeping Learners Safe guidance. The guidance is intended for all those working with children and young people in an education setting or related agency who may benefit from understanding the process and expectations for safeguarding in schools, and the wider system. There is also a summary version here.

The ‘Enhancing Digital Resilience in Education’ action plan sets out our cross-governmental commitment to enhance the safety of children and young people online and the activities we are undertaking to promote safe, responsible and considerate behaviour online.

The Keeping safe online area of Hwb has been designed to support online safety in education. It provides a wide range of bilingual resources and guidance to support practitioners in educating and safeguarding learners around online safety. See the resources and support section for more information.

As part of its’ role as regulator of the Online Safety Act, Ofcom has set out the steps it expects in-scope service providers to take to comply with their duties in relation to the protection of children online. Ofcom has also published ‘Violence against Women and Girls’ guidance (2025), which identifies areas where tech firms should do more to improve the online safety of women and girls.

• Through Hwb, the Welsh Government provides bilingual, digital services to all maintained schools to support teaching and learning through the Curriculum for Wales. Education practitioners, learners and their families can find information and support with a range of online safety issues, including online sexual harassment, sharing nudes, online hate and extremism through the Keeping Safe Online area of Hwb. This includes information on specialist reporting tools to report harmful content online.
• Framework on embedding a Whole School Approach to Emotional and Mental Wellbeing
• Adnodd have been commissioned by Welsh Government, and set out their long-term ambition for developing education resources that support the learning of the Curriculum for Wales.
• Stori Cymru’s Spectrum Project: educating schools in Wales about Domestic Abuse and Healthy Relationships.
• The National Training Framework for training on issues relating to violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence.
• Live Fear Free Helpline: if you, a family member a friend, or someone you are concerned about has experienced domestic abuse or sexual violence, you can contact the Live Fear Free Helpline 24 hours a day 7 days a week, for free advice and support or to talk through your options. You can contact the Helpline through the website, telephone, text, or SignLive.
• Barnardos: advice and information on anything for children and young people, and their families.
• The Internet Watch Foundation works to remove child sexual abuse imagery online and provides online safety information and resources  for young people, parents and professionals.
• Childline: available to help anyone under 19 in the UK with any issue they’re going through. Providing confidential and free advice, you can talk about anything. Contact them by calling 0800 1111, by email or through 1-2-1 counsellor chat.
• NSPCC: support and advice to help keep children safe.
• Children’s Commissioner for Wales: supporting children’s rights in Wales.
• Meic: National advocacy service for children and young people in Wales.
• OFCOM: online safety.