Sex workers in Nottingham are being invited to join a research advisory committee, to provide advice to experts who are developing a tool to improve their safety.
Dr Larissa Sandy, an Assistant Professor at the University of Nottingham, and Sam Richardson-Martin at the charity POW Nottingham, are designing a reporting tool, separate from the police, for sex workers to report when they've experienced sexual and/or violent crime.
The researchers are looking for sex worker representatives to sit on the committee to provide advice and feedback on the project. The committee will include a wide range of people who have an interest in supporting sex worker safety and access to justice, such as: sex workers, researchers, practitioners and law enforcement.
The group will meet three times over the year, with each meeting lasting approximately two hours, taking place locally in Nottingham. Representatives will be paid for their time, as well as lunch and travel costs being covered.
It is hoped the reporting tool will improve sex workers' access to justice and it will anonymously feed in to key agencies to keep sex workers safe. However, if someone decides they want to report to the police, then the tool can assist in the investigation and prevent re-traumatisation.
We want to make sure the tool we are developing will be fit for use, so the voices and views of sex workers are key to this. We are also working with professionals and the police to ensure the tool can be used in investigations, should someone want to report their experience to the police.
Sex worker representatives on the committee will need to be comfortable with sharing their lived experience with a wide range of people. We will however ensure this is a safe space to do so, and confidentiality is upheld with nothing being shared outside of the committee.
Estimates suggest street-based sex workers are twelve times more likely to die from workplace violence than other women1. Discriminatory relationships between sex workers and the police have resulted in inconsistent experiences accessing justice and very low reporting rates.
In the UK, sex work is legal but many surrounding activities like workers working together, advertising services and anything a worker needs to do to contact a client are illegal2. This means that most workers don't want to report violent crimes to the police because they fear being arrested or facing stigma and discrimination.
To find out more about the Research Committee role, including the Committee's Terms of Reference and how to apply, visit: www.pow-advice.org.uk/support-pow/the-british-academy-innovation-fellowship/
The project is funded by the British Academy's Innovation Fellowship, to support solutions-focused knowledge exchange.
