The Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) has created a training module for coach and bus drivers to help recognise and deal with violence against women and girls.
The trade body has commissioned the agency Understood to produce a package that includes a series of video clips and interactive activities.
It comes as the forthcoming Bus Services (No. 2) Bill will mandate training for drivers that will help combat on-board anti-social behaviour.
The new module is designed to be delivered as part of Driver CPC and it will be piloted in autumn for a full roll-out later this year.
As the government aims to halve violence against women and girls over the next decade, CPT has worked with partners including the White Ribbon and Women’s Aid in a bid to help the industry play its part.
Keith McNally, Operations Director of the Confederation of Passenger Transport, says: “We believe everyone should feel safe and comfortable using public transport, but sadly we know this isn’t always the case.
“This training is an important step for our industry, supporting drivers in recognising violence against women and girls and knowing what to do, helping them to lead the way in creating a safer public transport system across the country. Thank you to Understood for being such great partners in this work.”
Carolyn Quainton, Director of Understood, adds: “We’re proud to be working with CPT to get this important training module up and running.
“However, we recognise that training alone is not sufficient for tackling violence against women and girls; we believe training must sit alongside a wider system of support bringing people and organisations across communities together.”
