Equally Safe delivery plan: progress report

Deliverable 2

2. We will deliver the Scottish Government Gender-Based Violence and Learning Disabilities Steering Group Action Plan

Delivery plan actions to help meet this deliverable:

2.1 We will ensure all education settings, mainstream and Special Educational Needs, are equipped to strengthen pupil understanding of relationships and VAWG.

2.2 We will improve access to justice services for women and girls with learning disabilities.

2.3 We will improve access to support services for women and girls with learning disabilities.

2.4 We will continue to work with women and girls with learning disabilities to shape VAWG policy and practice.

Overview

The Gender-Based Violence & Learning Disability Steering Group, co-chaired by the Scottish Commission for People with Learning Disabilities (SCLD) and People First (Scotland), meets quarterly and continues to drive forward work to improve service provision to women with learning disabilities who are experiencing VAWG.

A key highlight was the launch of the Equally Safe and Supported toolkit, a practical resource for organisations to make their services more accessible. In addition, SCLD created and piloted an Accessibility Audit Tool with local gender-based violence support services to evaluate service accessibility for women and girls with learning disabilities. The resource was officially launched in June 2025.

Case study: The development of Equally Safe and Supported

Research by the SCLD and People First (Scotland)’s Equally Safe Group found that women with learning disabilities in Scotland are disproportionately affected by gender-based violence. Reasons for this included inconsistent approaches to support at a local level, and in some cases, the implementation of measures (such as guardianship procedures) that create additional barriers for women with learning disabilities when they report gender-based violence.

To address these concerning, and longstanding inequalities, we began by asking the Equally Safe Group what would help. Members advised on developing a resource that would meet their criteria.

SCLD and People First (Scotland)’s Equally Safe Group then worked together to co-produce a resource that would support organisations to make their services accessible to women with learning disabilities who have been affected by gender-based violence. The resource is called the Equally Safe and Supported: gender-based violence and learning disability self-assessment toolkit. You can access the toolkit here: Equally Safe and Supported | Gender-Based Violence and Learning Disability Self-Assessment Toolkit

The toolkit was co-designed to:

• Provide a structured, evidence informed method for organisations to assess their policies, culture, and practice in relation to prevention and support for women with learning disabilities.
• Promote consistency and quality across sectors, including education, health, social care, justice, and the third sector.
• Enable organisations to benchmark progress and demonstrate accountability to human rights standards.
• Support continuous improvement by offering practical guidance and resources linked to each assessment area.

The development process was collaborative involving:

• Co-production of the resource with women with learning disabilities.
• Stakeholder engagement with public sector organisations, third sector organisations, specialist gender-based violence services, specialist learning disability services, and academics.
• Review of existing frameworks to ensure alignment with human rights conventions, national policy, equality duties, and trauma informed practice.
• Pilot testing across a diverse set of organisations to ensure usability, accessibility, and relevance.
• Refinement of resources to ensure clarity, usability, and applicability across different organisations.

Feedback from pilot sites and the online launch of the toolkit have been consistently positive, highlighting the toolkit’s clarity, practicality and value in supporting organisations to make their services accessible to victim/survivors with learning disabilities.

“I take part in many groups but this group and the work we have done together to create the toolkit is making the change that is needed for women with learning disabilities.” Member of People First (Scotland)’s Equally Safe Group, 2025

“I attended the launch last week, and was very impressed by the inclusive, collaborative approach to developing the toolkit. It has clearly been well received by services for women and will add a new depth to their awareness and understanding of the needs of women and girls with learning disabilities.” SCLD Trustee, 2025

“We worked well as a group, supported each other and got the job done…We got everyone’s opinion and got it put into action.” Member of People First (Scotland)’s Equally Safe Group, 2025

This toolkit presents an opportunity to strengthen Scotland’s collective response to gender based violence by providing a practical, consistent, and evidence informed mechanism for organisations to assess and improve their practice, while supporting the wider ambitions of the Scottish Government and COSLA’s Equally Safe strategy.

Case study provided by Michelle Mair, SCLD