As part of an organisational approach to addressing domestic abuse, Southside Housing Association is supporting a global campaign which seeks to highlight speak out and act against all forms of gender-based violence.
Sixteen Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence runs from 25 November to 10 December.
The Association has launched its Domestic Abuse policy to coincide with the campaign. The policy forms part of the landlord’s overall organisational approach to addressing and tackling domestic violence and other forms of abuse.
According to Scottish Government data, Police Scotland has dealt with approximately 60,000 reports of domestic abuse every year for the last seven years, which highlights the scale of a problem which Southside is taking a stand to address.
The launch of the policy also reflects the recent Housing (Scotland) Act 2025, which was passed into law by the Scottish Parliament, and the commitment from the cabinet secretary for housing to implement the strengthened tenancy provisions of the Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act 2021 by the end of 2025.
The Association has already shown its commitment to challenge domestic abuse by signing up to the Chartered Institute of Housing’s (CIH) Make a Stand pledge, which commits social landlords to take action to support victims and to challenge domestic abuse.
Southside also marked the launch of its policy by delivering a series of training sessions for staff during November in partnership with domestic abuse training specialists Addressing Domestic Abuse, with further focused training with partners Amina Muslim Women’s Resource Centre to be delivered in the new year. The Association are also supporting the Sixteen Days campaign through its newsletter and website and via SHA’s social media channels during the campaign.
Pauline Fletcher, director of housing and communities at Southside, and Southside’s senior domestic abuse champion, said: “Domestic abuse has a debilitating effect on victims, families and communities and we want to be clear in our message that all forms of domestic abuse and gender based violence are unacceptable, and as a landlord we will use every resource at our disposal to ensure that everyone feels safe and secure in their tenancies and within our neighbourhoods.
“We are committed to addressing domestic abuse and to supporting victims of domestic abuse and gender based violence, and we want to empower our staff at Southside through training and support to have the tools and resources to respond effectively to incidences of domestic abuse.”