Event at City Hall with PIP and WISH to raise FGM awareness. Attendees learned about support, achievements, and policing responses.
FGM involves cutting or altering female genitals and is illegal in the UK. This practice can cause serious health issues. Bradford declared zero tolerance for FGM in 2017, with councillors pledging to fight against it.
Lord Mayor Beverley Mullaney, Dorcas Amusan-Fagborun MBE, and Lord Mayor Abigail Marshall Katung spoke at the event. Joanna Dodds and DCI Zaheer Abbas also attended. The event aimed to raise awareness about FGM and to educate and empower people.
Attendees learned about the achievements of PIP and WISH, including fifty free training sessions. The Leaving It Intact campaign has many goals, one of which being to raise awareness via training. They give crisis interventions and emotional support, offering both face-to-face and phone support, and signposting attendees to other organizations.
Further outreach, advocacy, drop-ins, and group support are available, with confidence building being another important goal of the campaign. DCI Abbas supports the work of PIP and WISH and spoke about policing responses to FGM.
Aneela Ahmed stated that PIP will support FGM survivors and provide information to organizations. Professionals are obligated to report known FGM cases. The Lord Mayors presented PIP awards to Nana Hagan, for empowering the African community, and to John Opoku, for his dedication to humanity. Shella Lone was recognized as the best volunteer of 2024. Attendees reaffirmed Bradford’s zero-tolerance pledge.