Ending gender based violence
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Everyone deserves to feel safe and secure in their home and community.
And yet gender-based violence happens in communities of every kind, urban and rural. It happens at work, at school and in the home.
Indigenous women, immigrants and newcomers, racialized people, transgender, gender diverse people and others in the 2SLGBTQ+ community, as well as those with disabilities, are especially targeted with violence.
It’s for this reason B.C. has committed to develop an action plan to help prevent, address and respond to gender-based violence. To support the development of this plan, engagement has occurred with a broad group of organizations and advocates. Read more about what was discussed at these engagement sessions. Additional engagement with Indigenous communities is also underway.
Work is also underway to help advance and support the hard work being done by so many service providers and community groups so they are able to focus on providing care. Read more about the work being done by some of these service providers for survivors of sexual assault in regions throughout B.C.
Support for survivors
The Province supports more than 400 victim service and violence against women programs across B.C., including community-based victim services programs; police-based victim service programs; Stopping the Violence counselling programs; outreach programs; multicultural outreach programs; and prevention, education, advocacy, counselling and empowerment (PEACE) programs. Read more about the work being done by these programs.
For information about staying safe and supports for people impacted by crime, including gender-based violence, sexual assault and domestic violence.
VictimLinkBC is a toll-free, confidential multilingual service available across B.C. and Yukon 24 hours a day, 7 days a week via phone, email or text.
For information on gender-based violence, sexual assault, and domestic violence.
In B.C., there are 10 child and youth advocacy centres, which provide a coordinated approach to child abuse investigations. Read more about child and youth advocacy centres.
Low-cost and no-cost community counselling services are available here through B.C.
Read more about paid leave for employees impacted by domestic or sexual violence.
Read more about skills training for employment program for survivors of violence and/or abuse.
Prevention and awareness
Violence is Preventable is a free, confidential, school-based violence prevention program for students in grades K-12. Presentations are delivered by Prevention, Education, Advocacy, Counselling and Empowerment (PEACE) Program counsellors. Read more about the work being done by this program.
B.C.’s physical and health education curriculum engages kindergarten to grade 10 students in learning about a variety of age-appropriate sexual health topics. Supporting student health guides provide teachers with a variety of instructional suggestions for teaching important health topics, including consent. Read more about B.C.'s physical and health education curriculum.
Respectful futures is a set of online resources for educators and community facilitators to provide school-aged children and youth with tools to develop healthy and respectful relationships (friendships, romantic, family and community).
Read more about sexualized violence policies at all B.C. public post-secondary institutions.
The “…Is Not Yes” consent awareness campaign features social media content, digital ads, and on-campus posters to increase awareness about sexualized violence prevention and available supports for post-secondary students. The campaign runs during the fall and spring semesters. Read more about this campaign.
The sexualized violence prevention and training resources are a series of resources developed in partnership with B.C. campus and public post-secondary institutions. These materials and facilitation guides are designed to support the implementation of training on awareness and prevention for students and staff at post-secondary institutions.
Be more than a bystander is a partnership between the BC Lions and the Ending Violence Association of B.C. Sport icons from the BC Lions leverage their public profile to create awareness and urge everyone to “Break the silence on violence against women.”
The B.C. centre for women in the trades partnered with ending violence association of B.C. to customize their be more than a bystander program for the skilled trades industry. This model engages men to take ownership and play an active role in ending gender-based bullying, harassment and violence. Read more about this program.
The moosehide campaign is an indigenous-led grassroots movement of men, boys and all Canadians standing up to end violence against women and children.
BC Bus North provides safe travel in northern B.C.
The Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General provides program funding for perpetrators of violence, to provide conflict resolution skills and prevent further abuse or violence.
These programs include:
- Community-based domestic violence prevention/intervention perpetrator programming
- Post-sentencing, BC Corrections’ Respectful Relationships
- Essential Skills to Success - Healthy Relationships available to sentenced and remanded individuals in B.C. correctional centres
For more information:
B.C. Custody Programs – Province of British Columbia (gov.bc.ca)
Reducing reoffending - Province of British Columbia (gov.bc.ca)
