‘Specialist domestic violence courts: how special are they?’ Dame Vera Baird QC unravelled this complex topic for South Lancashire’s Soroptimists at the Region’s Programme Action meeting. Dame Vera – a Soroptimist herself (in Newcastle) – explained how volunteer court observers, trained by the Crown Prosecution Service, observed 170 cases in Northumbria. Despite being the focus of multi-agency work, impartial observations in the court system are not routine. Therefore this project, undertaken by local Soroptimists, was ground-breaking. Using a simple questionnaire proforma the observers made notes as each case progressed. Factors included the existence/lack of practical safeguards for the victim in the court; the presence/absence of independent advisors to aid victims; guilty/not guilty plea ratios; and evidence of training of non-specialist magistrates. Over 90% of victims of domestic violence are women. The resulting report from the Soroptimists identified significant gaps in the current system, and made

Soroptimists, Soroptimists where have you been? We’ve been to London to see the Queen. Two Soroptimists from South Lancashire Region were privileged to receive an invitation to a garden party at Buckingham Palace. Clare Baxter and Jane Daly are trustees of Crosby Hall Educational Trust (CHET) in Little Crosby. Coincidentally their Soroptimist club (SI Crosby) has longstanding links with CHET. The duo was invited along with other two trustees, and joined the hundreds of guests on this special day. Reminiscing they said, “We were fortunate to see many members of the Royal family and look around the beautiful palace gardens in glorious sunshine. “We enjoyed a lovely afternoon tea while listening to the music of two military bands. It truly was a quintessentially English occasion.”    

The #BreakingBarriers conference attracted 40 Soroptimists from South Lancashire Region. Delegates shared the day with members of the neighbouring region, SI North West England and Isle of Man, who had organised the event. Speakers shared a variety of circumstances in which they had ‘broken through’ barriers, whether of gender, roles, ability or culture. Dr Erinma Bell from Manchester spoke forcefully about the challenge of ‘peace activism’; how she worked for many years to address gun crime in South Manchester; and how she is now furthering community partnerships in order to tackle inequalities. Her tales of feisty dealings with politicians were fascinating. Community activism is also the focus of White Ribbon (UK). Its founder, Chris Green, challenges his fellow men to face up to the role that men play domestic violence. “We need to reach out to men and lead by example”, he says. ‘Leading the

Soroptimists from South Lancashire have held their pre-season bowls meeting at SI Southport’s clubhouse. The Region’s annual competition brings together teams from several clubs for keenly-fought matches each summer. This year teams from Crosby, Leigh & District, Liverpool, Southport and Widnes Soroptimist clubs will be competing. SI St Helens may also field a team. There are two trophies played for: the team rosebowl and the Tricia Fahey cup for an individual player. (Tricia, of SI Crosby, was a past Federation President and founder of the competition.) The draw took place and captains will now be arranging fixtures. The final will take place on 1st September, at Pennington Park in Leigh. Dot Massey, who co-ordinates the competition said: “A big thank you to Southport Soroptimists for their hospitality. “I notice their members were debating over the colour of new kit. Let’s hope this year’s competition is