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Date: 25 November 2025
An innovative construction skills project for females is one of 27 Belfast community and voluntary-led schemes benefiting from £255,000 of grants to help tackle violence against women and girls across the city.
The Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor Tracy Kelly, today met with participants on the Hard Hat Thinking series, delivered by Women’s TEC, to mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and the start of the UN’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.
She heard how they are combining hands-on learning in non-traditional female sectors with practical workshops focusing on understanding how to better recognise and report abuse, building confidence and unlocking specialist support and access to services.
The project is part of the Local Change Fund, set up by Belfast City Council to support the Northern Ireland Executive’s seven-year Strategic Framework, led by the Executive Office, to End Violence Against Women and Girls. It is one of 11 local funds being delivered by councils across Northern Ireland through the framework.
Among the other projects to receive funding in Belfast are Games, Protection and Sport, an innovative sports-based programme for both men and women in north Belfast, delivered by Tackling Awareness of Mental Health Issues (TAMHI); Wasted, a play aimed at exploring issues of consent with pupils aged 16 and over at secondary schools, from Bruiser Theatre Company; culturally sensitive training, workshops and community events to the city’s black and minority ethnic communities from Belfast City of Sanctuary; and training and mentoring to help break the silence and stigma around violence towards women and girls in the LGBTQIA+ community, delivered by HERe NI.
All the successful projects are being delivered between now and April 2026, following an open call to the sector earlier this year.
Speaking at Women’s TEC, the Lord Mayor of Belfast, Councillor Tracy Kelly, said: “All these projects are great examples of the vital work happening, every day, across Belfast to tackle this issue and make it clear that every woman has a right to feel, and be, safe, wherever they are.
“These grants are supporting community groups like Women’s TEC to challenge the attitudes, behaviours and cultures that cause violence against women and girls and to work towards promoting healthy, respectful relationships among all age groups.
“Given the huge popularity of this grant scheme – with 95 applications requesting over £1.25 million of funding between them - the council has also written to the Executive Office to ask for further money to be made available so we can support more projects like these in our local communities.
“The Executive Office has indicated their initial support for this, and I look further to seeing how else council can work with community organisations to shine a spotlight on this important work.”
Lynn Carvill, CEO of Women’s TEC, said: “We were delighted to receive funding from the Local Change Fund to run our Hard Hat Thinking series of workshops.
“Regrettably, domestic and sexual violence is presenting as an issue for too many of our students.
“We welcome the opportunity to increase awareness and challenge this societal scourge within the safe space that Women’s TEC provides, and today’s visit from the Lord Mayor allowed us to share this work with her as she met our students and team, and saw its importance for women and communities across Belfast.”
The Local Change Fund is among a range of initiatives undertaken by the council this year to support the delivery of the NI Executive Strategy.
Over 1,000 people have taken part in 65 events, including free training for community and voluntary groups, personal safety events in community centres, bespoke area events designed with advice and women’s centres, and a conference for sports clubs, looking specifically at ways to engage men and boys in the conversation.
The council is also administering the Regional Change Fund programme on behalf of the Executive Office, supporting eight organisations to deliver £1.2 million of programming to bring about society-wide change.
Evaluation shows that 95% of respondents felt that the activities delivered by the council had increased their knowledge of what violence against women and girls is, while 91% said they felt more confident about what they can do to help support the subject in their own home or workplace.