Summary of approach and activity in relation to prostitution in Glasgow

BACKGROUND Until May 1998 there was limited liaison between agencies, and contact tended to be as a result of joint working to access provision for a woman experiencing a particular crisis or following press concern. There had been six murders and one suspicious death of women involved in prostitution in Glasgow between 1991 and 1998. An Officer Working Group on Prostitution was established by Glasgow City Council in May 1998, comprising senior representatives and specialists from Strathclyde Police, Greater Glasgow Health Board, Glasgow City Council, Base 75 and the Women's Support Project. The remit of the Working Group was to explore relevant issues, audit current provision, identify gaps in service provision, identify best practice elsewhere and draw up an action plan for consideration by the Council and other partner agencies. During the life of the Officer Working Group both Greater Glasgow Health Board and Strathclyde Police established internal working groups in order to address policy and service issues in relation to prostitution. It was recognised by agencies in the city that there was a need for a coordinated and proactive approach. A small steering group was established in July 1998 to develop a Social Inclusion Partnership proposal in order to provide a strategic partnership to develop policy and practice required to address prostitution issues in Glasgow, to develop a co-ordinated and proactive response by partner agencies, and to establish an intervention team to assist women exiting prostitution and to inform mainstream policy and practice within the city. The Routes out of prostitution partnership Board, established in July 1999, comprises Glasgow City Council, Strathclyde Police, Greater Glasgow NHS Trust, Base 75 Support Service (for women involved in prostitution), Women's Support Project and Glasgow Drug Action Team. The SIP comprises 3 core elements 1. a city wide partnership, supported by a Partnership Manager, with a remit to develop a strategic approach to the issues of prostitution 2. a small, specialist intervention team to respond to women wishing to exit prostitution and to work with relevant agencies to make their mainstream services more accessible to women 3. a commitment from all partners to reviewing their current services, in the light of the city wide strategy and the experience of the intervention team, and to adjusting services to be more accessible and more responsive

The Routes out SIP aims to prevent further harm and social exclusion by preventing women, particularly young women, becoming involved in prostitution providing viable alternatives to women who wish to stop prostituting and supporting them to take up provision such as safe housing, child care support, drug programmes, and training and employment changing public and agency perceptions of prostitution involving women themselves in shaping and developing services STREET PROSTITUTION IN GLASGOW Strathclyde Police estimates that 1,400 women are involved in street prostitution in Glasgow (Strathclyde Police Intelligence, Crime Management figures and Base 75). It is widely acknowledged that approximately 95% are using illicit drugs, mostly heroin. The view of prostitution as survival behaviour rather than sexual behaviour is a powerful one when the experience of street prostitutes reveals high levels of sexual abuse, homelessness, drug use and poverty. Whatever these experiences may have been, they are likely to be exacerbated by involvement in prostitution. Some of the major issues around in womens lives are: Poverty Drug/Alcohol use Involvement in the Criminal Justice system Homelessness/Housing problems Previous/Current experience of sexual /emotional abuse and violence Emotional instability/mental Health problems including attempted suicide Low educational Achievement/Unemployment Young People at Risk

It is recognised that violence, experience of abuse, poverty and drugs are at the root of street prostitution in Glasgow. Women are involved in prostitution because of their need to fund drug use and because they have no other viable means of earning the amount of money which they require, through legitimate pursuits. There is overwhelming evidence that the money which women make in prostitution primarily goes straight to those supplying drugs and that women themselves do not benefit apart from ensuring their own and their partners drug supply. Indicators show that women in Glasgow are likely to be amongst the most disadvantaged of any population in the U.K. According to the Scottish Area Deprivation Index (September 1998) all of the worst 1% postcode sectors and 65% of the worst 10% postcode sectors, in Scotland are in Glasgow. 65% of Glasgows postcode sectors are in the worst 20% in Scotland.

INDOOR PROSTITUTION

The Officer Working Group report dealt exclusively with street prostitution but during the life of the Working Group there was concern about the licensing of saunas and massage parlours by the Council under the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982. Whilst these establishments were licensed for lawful activities it was widely understood that some involved prostitution. Only a small percentage of these enterprises were in fact licensed and there were few means by which these operations were systematically investigated. The Council and the Police have worked closely together over the last year to review the licensing process and there will be much closer scrutiny of future licence applications and of premises, which are in receipt of licences. The view in Glasgow is that the establishment of toleration zones and the licensing of brothels as saunas or massage parlours is an out of sight, out of mind approach. Concerns about women involved in saunas include:

involvement of young women link with other forms of organised crime mental health of women womens experience of violence within owners/managers debt bonding of women to saunas presence of trafficked women general vulnerability of women involved

saunas

by

clients

and

The Routes Out Intervention Team have had a number of self-referrals from women involved in saunas. Examples of issues, which have been raised are intimidation by owner/manager, debt bonding, lack of control over sexual practices undertaken and other forms of abuse. Over the last year or so a number of women from Eastern Europe and Thailand have been discovered in saunas raising the concern of relevant agencies that women are being trafficked to Glasgow. CONTEXT AND LINKS TO OTHER POLICIES AND STRATEGIES Unlike most areas of social policy, the issue of prostitution is highly contentious. It is the subject of strong views and value judgements, with regulatory duties placed on a number of public agencies because of the current legal situation. All partnership activities are therefore guided by the following key principles Respect for women involved in prostitution Concern for womens safety and well being Non-judgmental and confidential approach to women involved in prostitution Recognition of the harm done to women and their families through prostitution

The work in Glasgow is located within the context of existing strategies both at community, Glasgow City, Scottish and UK level. Women involved in prostitution are disadvantaged at many levels, in respect of poverty, poor housing, poor health, unemployment and low educational attainment; many

with a history of sexual abuse and physical violence; drug and alcohol dependency and mental health issues. Many women will also have suffered the loss and stigma of having their children looked after by others or adopted, therefore pushing them further into the margins of society as failed parents. Current government policies are aimed at ending the social exclusion of women like those involved in prostitution. Few people are so disadvantaged and so marginalised. Agencies in Glasgow have accepted that it is essential to have a clear view on prostitution, developed in the context of other policies and strategies (Social Inclusion, Equality, Community safety, and Violence against women). How prostitution is viewed is key to the approach adopted and all resulting activity. Glasgow agencies involved in tackling this issue through the strategic partnership view prostitution as male violence and one form of commercial sexual exploitation. Street prostitution is a significant social problem in Glasgow, which affects women, families and communities. As with other social problems it is recognised that public agencies have a role to play in tackling the causes and the impact of prostitution. The various partners in Glasgow gave evidence to the Local Government Committee earlier this year whilst they were considering a Private Members Bill which would have enabled local authorities to consult on, establish and manage Tolerance Zones for street prostitution. Agencies in Glasgow have vociferously opposed this Bill as a move towards regulating and normalising prostitution and minimising the harm done to women. We have also been looking at the experience of other legislative frameworks the Netherlands, Victoria in Australia and Sweden as we recognise that there is a need to review the approach to prostitution generally rather than merely responding piecemeal to the many issues/problems arising. ACTIVITY BY GLASGOW CITY COUNCIL A key element of the Routes Out partnership is that public agencies are committed to tackling the issues relating to prostitution and ensuring services respond to women who are so stigmatised and isolated. The Council has established a Policy and Resources Working Group on prostitution and agreed an ambitious action plan, which is monitored and reviewed on a 6 weekly basis. Theres a whole range of activity underway in Glasgow to address the problems of prostitution. Base 75 was established by Social Work in 1989 to support women involved in prostitution, by providing counselling, methadone prescribing, medical screening, health promotion and information. This support and harm reduction provision has been significantly enhanced over the past couple of years and the city centre premises refurbished to provide a high quality environment for service users. An Intervention Team was established as part of the Routes Out of Prostitution Social Inclusion Partnership in October 2000 to assist women to make the difficult break from prostitution by ensuring access to safe housing, child care support and training and employment. To date over 100 women have been in touch with the Intervention Team.

A Co-ordinator has just been appointed to integrate these two services in order to provide an enhanced and comprehensive service to women. Homelessness or threat of homelessness is a major issue for women and Housing Services are supporting a number of women to re-establish their lives in flats provided in different areas of the city. Housing Services and the Intervention Team are supporting a small group of women to make the transition from benefits in to employment in order to overcome the benefits trap. A major barrier for women is the requirement to declare previous convictions for soliciting. Women face being stereotyped, stigmatised and rejected for posts because of the perceived nature of offences. The Councils Personnel Services have included guidance to those involved in recruitment within the Council and have raised the issue with employers forums within the city. A case study with a woman who has a previous record of soliciting offences is now built in to the Councils compulsory recruitment and selection training. Social Work Services are actively addressing the provision of alternatives to involvement in the criminal justice system, thereby decreasing the number of women given custodial sentences. A Time Out Centre funded by the Scottish Executive and managed by Glasgow Social Work is scheduled to open by the end of this year. This will provide a further alternative and make available intensive support including residential provision. The Council is also raising general awareness of employees about the nature of prostitution and promoting the view of it as survival rather than sexual behaviour. A good practice guide adapted from the one published by the Franki Project was adapted for use in Scotland. A leaflet aimed at staff and outlining Council policy and expectations of staff has been disseminated to all 34,000 staff working for the Council. The Council is committed to changing the public perception of prostitution as acceptable and inevitable and to challenging the view that prostitution is about choice or work. As an Education authority, the Council has committed resources and energy to promoting positive relationships between young people and addressing inequality between girls and boys in the Action against Abuse curricular material and the Zero Tolerance Respect project. This programme now includes material on prostitution and is available to all secondary schools in Glasgow.

Ann Hamilton June 03