“We need to see funding commitments for specialist domestic abuse services, from the current and any potential future governments so that women and girls who have experienced abuse can be properly supported to rebuild their lives. Decades of chronic underfunding in the sector, and the cost-of-living crisis, have meant that proper sustainable funding is desperately needed.”
8. Transgender women’s safety
Charlie Craggs, actress and activist: “There has been a very strategic PR campaign in the media and on social media to rebrand transgender people from the bullied to the bully – all while we continue to be bullied. We are not a danger; we are *in* danger. I pray 2024 is the year people start to realise this before things get even worse.”
9. Legal reform
Dr Charlotte Proudman: “As a barrister representing survivors of violence, I want to pay tribute to their bravery in speaking out about their experiences of the justice system; many women describe being treated like criminals rather than victims, whilst others describe the trial as worse than the violence they suffered.
“Life is not much better for barristers who fight for the rights of women. I, like many other women and marginalised barristers, have suffered systemic bullying by colleagues for speaking out about injustice and misogyny. The Bar Council published a report showing that 44% of those who replied to a survey had witnessed or experienced bullying.
“As we step into the new year, it’s our collective duty to advocate for change. I want to see everyone in the justice system unwaveringly supported and protected. Let’s resolve to champion a legal system that reveres diversity, equality and a fundamental right to speak truth to power in 2024.”
10. Take maternal rights seriously
Joeli Brearley, CEO and founder of Pregnant Then Screwed: “In 2024, we finally want to see the government take the rights of mothers seriously. From pregnancy and maternity discrimination, which impacts three-quarters of mothers, to a lack of affordable and high-quality childcare, to a parental leave system which reinforces the notion that it is a woman’s job to do the caring.
“It is high time legislation supported a woman’s right to have children and a career, should she so wish. We, therefore, want to see an increase in properly paid paternity leave, funding for nurseries and childminders that will enable them to provide high-quality education and care, and all jobs to be advertised as flexible unless there is a good business reason not to do so, for non-disclosure agreements to be unenforceable in cases of discrimination, and finally an extension to the time limit to raise a tribunal claim so that women have more chance of accessing the justice they deserve.”
11. Peace for all women impacted by war
Niki Ignatiou, Senior Humanitarian Policy and Research Specialist at ActionAid UK: “In a year where we’ve witnessed a sharp increase in violent and acute conflicts across the world, we’ve lost sight of the sheer trauma women and girls are facing every single day. With more than 600 million women and girls living in conflict-affected countries, we are failing whole generations of women and the communities they are helping to keep on their feet. Widespread human rights abuses are being witnessed in the ongoing war in Ukraine, in conflicts in Sudan, the DRC, and with the escalation of violence in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel, it’s clear that in 2024 far more needs to be done to protect women’s rights and their safety.”
For more from Glamour UK’s Lucy Morgan, follow her on Instagram @lucyalexxandra.