We believe that:

• sexual violence is both a cause and a consequence of inequality amongst genders. It is the result of harmful ideas about gender which influence all parts of society, from personal relationships to institutional responses

• we live in a society where dominant ideas about gender limit the freedom and rights of women, children and LGBTQ+ people and perpetuate negative stereotypes of masculinity for men to live up to

• many of the societal inequalities that exist amongst genders result from sexual violence, for example, disruption to education, limited access to housing or negative impacts on mental health.

• sexual violence is often perpetrated as a form of hate crime where a person experiences violence as an attack on their identity. For example, it is often perpetrated as a form of homophobic or transphobic abuse.

• gender based violence requires an evidence-based, gender-specific response

• survivors are the experts in their own experience and we will support them to exercise control and direction of their own lives

Survivor- centred

Survivors and survivors' needs are at the heart of our thinking, planning and practice. This means that we will:

• listen to survivors voices and ensure they are represented at all levels of the organisation
• create an environment in which survivors can flourish and are empowered
• ensure that survivors views and ideas guide and shape our campaigning, decisions and service development

Kindness

We recognise the importance of kindness and humanity for creating a warm, supportive and welcoming environment in the Centre itself, and for building strong relationships amongst staff, survivors, volunteers and trustees. FVRCC should be somewhere that feels good to be. We believe that kindness can improve resilience, strengthen the ability to withstand stress and challenges, and can contribute to positive, creative solutions.

This means that we will:

• make space and time for "softer" values and activities, such as thera-pets, gardening and self-care workshops
• we see our employees as people first, and seek to understand and take account of personal circumstances and challenges
• recognise the impact that working with trauma has on people, and ensure that effective support arrangements are both put in place and used
• proactively recognise, monitor and, where possible, remove barriers to our services and to our governance

Innovation

We have the freedom to dream, and to imagine without boundaries the changes we want, to be creative, and to plan how to achieve those changes within the context of our current environment and values.

This means that we will:

• welcome and create the space for creative and innovative thinking
• understand and pursue the needs of survivors, and develop innovative practice
• accept the risk that some things may fail, ensure that we learn from both success and failure, and build evidence
• listen to and respect the ideas and opinions of others
• create and maintain a learning culture, and invest in skills and development of staff, volunteers and trustees, building the capacity of the organisation
• be open minded, and consider the best ways to achieve objectives rather than simply following accepted wisdom or practices

Diversity and representation

We are committed to improving diversity and representation as we recruit staff, volunteers and trustees, and to identifying and reducing the barriers to access for services.

This means that we will:

• support the participation and representation of different ethnic and racial identities, people with disabilities, age, sexual orientation and gender identity and the communities (urban and rural) of Forth Valley.
• proactively advertise and publicise opportunities and events across a broad range of organisations, communities and websites
• record progress through skills and governance audits, equal opportunities monitoring and gathering feedback from volunteers, survivors and participants

Transparency

We will all be as open and participative as possible, within the limitations of confidentiality and personal safety

This means that we will:

• ensure that the survivors we support understand the nature of and limitations to confidentiality agreements
• have a fair, transparent and accessible complaints process

Our pledge

We will ensure that our core beliefs and values are at the heart of our governance, decision-making, campaigning, and the development of our practice and our services.