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Service Tag: Campaigns

Reclaim the Net: 16 Days of Activism

16 Days of Activism to End Violence Against Women and Girls

As part of the 16 Days of Activism against Violence Against Women and Girls, we are inviting women and girls to share their experiences of online communities and spaces.

We want to hear about the realities of being a woman or girl online. This may include experiences of harassment, abuse, discrimination, exclusion, unwanted messages, sexist behaviour, pressure to hide your identity, or concerns about your safety. We also welcome experiences that highlight support, allyship, friendship, and positive online communities.

Your experience could have happened recently or years ago and may have taken place in community groups, forums, live chats, voice channels, streaming platforms, gaming communities, or other online spaces.

Responses may be shared anonymously as part of our 16 Days of Activism campaign, which runs from 25th November to 10th December. By sharing real stories and perspectives, we hope to raise awareness of how women and girls are treated online, encourage conversation, and challenge harmful behaviour.

 
The survey is completely anonymous, and you can share as much or as little as you feel comfortable with.
 
There are no right or wrong answers.
Every experience matters.
 
By sharing your story, you can help build a clearer picture of what life online is really like for women and girls.

Have you ever had an experience in an online game or gaming community that made you feel uncomfortable, excluded, unsafe, or treated differently? Please tell us about it.

Double Your Donation Today

Abuse Can Change Everything in an Instant.
Your Support Can Change Everything After That.

From 6th October until 12pm on 13th October, every donation to First Light’s Crisis Fund will be doubled through the Big Give Women and Girls Match Fund.

That means your gift could have twice the impact for women and girls affected by domestic abuse and sexual violence.

When Everything Changes Overnight

Abuse can turn someone’s world upside down in a moment.

Someone fleeing domestic abuse may leave there home with nothing but the clothes she is wearing. A survivor of sexual violence may find that essential belongings, including clothing or a mobile phone, are taken as part of a police investigation. Others may struggle to afford the travel costs needed to reach counselling, medical appointments, support services or court hearings.

At a time when everything feels uncertain, practical support can make all the difference.

Every day, First Light supports people through our Domestic Abuse Services, Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC), Independent Sexual Violence Advisor (ISVA) services and specialist therapy programmes. While statutory funding helps us deliver these vital services, it does not always cover the emergency items survivors need during a crisis.

That’s why our Crisis Fund exists.

👉 Donate today: https://donate.biggive.org/donate/a05WS00000FcBEjYAN

Providing Support When No Other Funding Is Available

The Crisis Fund helps us respond to urgent needs that can become barriers to safety, recovery and independence.

Donations help provide practical support such as:

  • Emergency transport to a place of safety
  • Temporary accommodation during a crisis
  • Clothing, toiletries and essential care packs
  • Mobile phones, SIM cards and emergency phone credit
  • Travel costs to therapy, counselling, medical appointments and court hearings
  • Emergency financial support when no other funding is available

They are often the practical lifelines that help someone stay safe, access support and take the next step towards recovery.

👉 Donate today: https://donate.biggive.org/donate/a05WS00000FcBEjYAN

Small Things That Make a Big Difference

For someone in crisis, a train ticket to a counselling appointment can mean they continue receiving support.

A mobile phone can help them stay connected to an ISVA or support worker.

Emergency clothing and toiletries can provide dignity after an incredibly difficult experience.

The Crisis Fund helps remove practical barriers that survivors should never have to face alone.

Make Twice the Difference

For one week only, every donation made through the Women and Girls Match Fund will be doubled.

  • £25 becomes £50
  • £50 becomes £100
  • £100 becomes £200

Your donation will help ensure that when survivors need support most, help is available.

👉 Donate today: https://donate.biggive.org/donate/a05WS00000FcBEjYAN

Thank You

We are incredibly grateful to Big Give and the Women and Girls Match Fund for making this campaign possible.

Their support means every donation made before 12pm on 13th October will be matched pound for pound, helping us reach and support even more women and girls affected by domestic abuse and sexual violence.

We would also like to thank everyone who chooses to donate.

Your generosity helps provide the practical support that statutory funding cannot always cover. Because of supporters like you, survivors can access essential items, attend vital appointments, remain connected to specialist services and continue their journey towards safety and recovery.

Together, we can be there during some of the most challenging moments in a person’s life.

Help Us Be There When It Matters Most

Match funding is available for a limited time, but the need for support continues every day.

If you can, please donate before 12pm on 13th October and make your gift go twice as far.

Every donation matters. Every pound helps. Every gift will be doubled.

👉 Donate today: https://donate.biggive.org/donate/a05WS00000FcBEjYAN

Abuse can change everything in an instant. Your support can change everything after that.

First Light accepted into the Big Give Women and Girls Match Fund

First Light is delighted to have been accepted into this year’s Big Give Women and Girls Match Fund, giving supporters the chance to help us raise vital funds for local Survivor Crisis Funds.

Why this matters

Through the campaign, we aim to raise £7,000 in donations. Every eligible donation will then be matched through The Big Give, helping us reach a total of £14,000 for local Survivor Crisis Funds across the counties we work in.

The campaign will run from 12pm on 6th October to 12pm on 13th October, giving supporters one week to donate and have their eligible donation matched through The Big Give.

The funds will provide practical, immediate support for people affected by sexual violence, domestic abuse and church-related abuse, helping First Light respond to urgent needs that traditional funding often cannot cover.

For many people, the barriers to safety and recovery are practical as well as emotional. A lack of phone credit, money for transport, food, clothing or personal safety items can prevent someone from accessing support, attending appointments or taking important steps towards safety.

The Crisis Funds will help provide:

  • Personal safety devices and alarms
  • Emergency travel costs
  • Mobile phone credit and data
  • Food and essential household items
  • Clothing and toiletries
  • Emergency accommodation-related costs
  • Other urgent practical support tailored to an individual’s circumstances

These are often relatively small costs, but they can have a significant impact on someone’s ability to access support, increase their safety and move forward with their recovery.

 

How your support can help

By supporting this campaign, donors can help create flexible local funds that First Light staff can use quickly and safely when someone faces an urgent practical challenge.

Our ambition is to build support for a Crisis Fund in each county we work in, ensuring that people can receive practical help at the point they need it most.

The Big Give Women and Girls Match Fund is a powerful opportunity to make every donation go further and increase the support available to people who rely on First Light’s services.

This year’s campaign builds on First Light’s previous Big Give activity, while taking a wider approach across the counties we work in.

Previous Big Give campaigns helped raise £10,000 for Cornwall Domestic Abuse Service and just over £3,000 for services in Swindon and Wiltshire.

This year, our goal is to raise £7,000 in donations, which will be doubled by The Big Give to create a total of £14,000.

We know from our work every day that practical support can make the difference between someone remaining in crisis and someone being able to take the next step towards safety and recovery.

More details about the campaign and how to donate will be shared soon. Please look out for updates ahead of 6 October and help us spread the word when the campaign goes live.

 

Looking ahead: upcoming campaigns and projects

Supporting students during Freshers’ season

Throughout September, First Light will be attending Freshers’ events across the counties we work in, sharing information and resources with students. We will also be exploring opportunities to support student-led Students Against Abuse societies and networks over the next 12 months.

Domestic Abuse Awareness Month: It Didn’t Start Like This

Launching in October, First Light’s Domestic Abuse Awareness Month campaign, It Didn’t Start Like This, will focus on helping people recognise the early signs of abuse and understand how harmful behaviours can escalate over time. We will be inviting communities, organisations and supporters to get involved and help spread the message.

Reclaim the Net: 16 Days of Action

First Light’s 16 Days of Action Against Violence Against Women and Girls campaign will focus on online abuse this year. Through events, awareness raising and a 16-day digital protest, the campaign will explore the experiences of women and girls online and advocate for safer digital spaces.

Blow the Whistle campaign reaches an estimated 1 million people during FIFA World Cup 2026

First Light’s national campaign used the power of sport to challenge domestic abuse and sexual violence, encouraging supporters, clubs, organisations and communities to play their part, call out abuse and blow the whistle.

First Light is celebrating the impact of its Blow the Whistle campaign, launched around the FIFA World Cup 2026 to raise awareness of domestic abuse and sexual violence and promote safe, positive action across sporting spaces.

The campaign reframed the conversation away from blame-based narratives around football and alcohol, instead focusing on responsibility, allyship, safe intervention and access to specialist support. By using sport as a shared language, Blow the Whistle created opportunities for people to recognise harmful behaviour, speak up safely and help make support easier to find.

Campaign impact

Across First Light and partner channels, Blow the Whistle achieved an estimated reach of one million views across Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. The actual impact is likely to have been higher, with many organisations posting multiple times throughout the campaign period and supporters helping to amplify the message through shares, comments and staff-led activity.

In total, 67 organisations engaged with the campaign across social media, with 22 organisations publicly joining the campaign and agreeing for their logos to be displayed.

Together, participating organisations represented combined audiences of more than two million followers, helping the message reach communities well beyond First Light’s own channels.

Campaign supporters include:

Headline results

  • Estimated reach of one million views across First Light and partner social media channels.
  • 67 organisations engaged with the campaign across Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
  • 22 organisations publicly joined the campaign by agreeing for their logos to be displayed.
  • Participating organisations had combined audiences of more than two million followers.
  • The message was further amplified through individual shares, reposts, comments, supporter activity and informal community conversations.

Keeping the conversation going

Although the FIFA World Cup has now ended, First Light will continue to take Blow the Whistle into wider sporting spaces. The campaign has shown the value of working with organisations, clubs and communities to challenge abuse, encourage allyship and make specialist support more visible.

By working together, we can help ensure fans, players, clubs and communities know how to recognise abuse, challenge harmful behaviour and access support when it is needed. Every conversation creates another opportunity to challenge abuse, support survivors and build safer spaces in sport and beyond.

BBC Spotlight – Self-Test Rape Kits

A huge thank you to BBC Spotlight for inviting First Light to share our concerns about self-test rape kits, and why the responsibility to collect evidence should never be placed on someone who has experienced sexual assault.

Our CEO, Lyn Gooding, joined BBC Spotlight to highlight the risks associated with these unregulated kits. This coverage follows sustained campaigning by First Light and Rape Crisis to ensure that victims and survivors receive accurate information about the support available to them, and fully understand the potential risks posed by home testing kits.

It is essential that anyone who has experienced sexual assault can access the right support, clear advice, and informed choices. This includes appropriate medical care and the safe, professional collection of forensic evidence in a clean clinical environment. Evidence collected in these settings can also be securely stored for at least two years, allowing individuals time and space to decide whether they wish to report to the police.

BBC Broadcast – 27/05/2026

The safest and most effective route for anyone who has been raped or sexually assaulted remains their local Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC).

SARCs offer specialist forensic examinations, medical care, emotional support, and safeguarding, all delivered by trained professionals. Importantly, these services are available whether or not someone chooses to involve the police.

Read more: Why experts are urging caution on DIY rape test kits – BBC News

We are grateful to the BBC for continuing to raise awareness of this important issue.

Read related news posts

Blow the Whistle: A National Campaign to Challenge Abuse Through Sport

Launching around the FIFA World Cup 2026, First Light is proud to introduce Blow the Whistle – a national campaign using the power of sport to challenge domestic abuse and sexual violence.

Sport brings people together. It shapes attitudes, teaches values, and reaches millions across England and Wales. Blow the Whistle harnesses the shared language, symbols and spirit of sport to encourage people to recognise abuse, speak up safely, and connect to specialist support.

At its heart, the campaign is built on a simple idea: abuse has no place in sport or the communities it brings together.

Why Blow the Whistle?

Domestic abuse and sexual violence remain widespread, yet they are often hidden, minimised or misunderstood. Harmful behaviours, including emotional abuse, coercive control and intimidation, are frequently normalised, and many people who notice warning signs do not feel confident to intervene or speak out.

Major sporting tournaments like the World Cup are moments of heightened emotion, visibility and connection. They can be positive and unifying, but they can also increase risk within some relationships. Blow the Whistle responds to this reality in a preventative and supportive way, focusing on awareness, responsibility and access to help rather than blame.

Crucially, the campaign does not position sport as the problem. Instead, it recognises sport as a powerful force for cultural change, grounded in values of fairness, respect and accountability.

Blowing the whistle means:

  • Noticing when something isn’t right
  • Calling out abusive behaviour safely
  • Checking in and showing care
  • Making support visible and accessible

What the Campaign Aims to Achieve

The overall purpose of Blow the Whistle is to reduce tolerance of abuse by increasing awareness, encouraging action and strengthening pathways to support.

The campaign aims to:

  • Increase understanding of domestic abuse and sexual violence, including non-physical forms of harm
  • Encourage people to recognise warning signs and feel able to call out abuse safely
  • Reinforce that silence allows abuse to continue, while support and action can protect people
  • Promote awareness of specialist support services and how to access them
  • Embed messages of respect, fairness and safety within sporting culture

These aims are delivered through high visibility activity, consistent messaging and clear signposting to support.

The Core Idea: Blowing the Whistle

In sport, the whistle stops play, calls out a foul and protects participants. It symbolises fairness, authority and accountability.

Blow the Whistle extends this action beyond the pitch. When something isn’t right, in relationships, homes or communities, we stop, we speak up, and we support those affected.

The whistle acts as both a visual symbol and a collective action. It is easy to understand, works across all sports, and allows individuals, clubs and organisations to show support without needing specialist knowledge or complex messaging.

Key Campaign Messages

Four clear messages run through all campaign activity:

Abuse has no place in sport
Sport is built on respect, fairness and teamwork. Abuse violates these values and should never be accepted.

Everyone has a role to play
Fans, players, coaches, referees, clubs and organisations all shape culture. Change happens when responsibility is shared.

Silence allows abuse to continue
Noticing harm and saying nothing enables it. Speaking up, checking in or signposting support can interrupt abuse.

Support is available
No one has to face abuse alone. Confidential, specialist help is available for anyone experiencing abuse or worried about someone else.

A Collective National Campaign

Blow the Whistle is intentionally designed as a collective effort. While First Light leads on strategy, safeguarding and survivor-centred practice, the campaign depends on sports organisations, clubs, charities, public bodies and community groups taking visible action together.

Launched around football, the campaign is multi-sport and adaptable, making it relevant across professional sport, grassroots clubs and local communities.

How to Get Involved

Organisations and individuals can take part in ways that suit them. This might include:

  • Sharing campaign messages and visuals online
  • Taking part in the national “Blow the Whistle” moment during the World Cup
  • Displaying posters or digital signage in venues or workplaces
  • Encouraging staff, volunteers or members to engage with the campaign
  • Embedding the campaign within existing safeguarding or wellbeing activity

Every action, big or small, helps reinforce a shared stand against abuse.

👉 Find out how to get involved, access resources and learn more at: https://www.firstlight.org.uk/blowthewhistle

Standing Together for Change

Blow the Whistle invites everyone who cares about sport to take shared responsibility for challenging abuse. By linking the familiar act of blowing a whistle with stopping harm and supporting others, the campaign offers an accessible and values-led way to act.

Abuse is always a foul.
Respect is part of the game.
When we see harm, it’s time to blow the whistle.

Campaign supporters include:

This campaign is growing, with more organisations joining regularly.

By standing together, supporters help amplify a shared message and show that challenging abuse is a collective responsibility.

Abuse from Online Dating: The Invisible Issue

New First Light research reveals widespread abuse on dating apps, and why it is often missed, normalised or unsupported

 

“You start to expect it, the messages, the pressure, the pictures you didn’t ask for. It just feels like part of using dating apps.”

Online dating is part of everyday life for many people. Dating apps can offer connection, choice and opportunity.
But new research from First Light shows that they can also be places where abuse happens, often repeatedly, and often without support.

Our research, Abuse from Online Dating: The Invisible Issue, shows that abuse linked to dating apps is common, normalised and under‑reported. Many people who took part were unsure whether what they experienced counted as abuse, or where they could go for help.

This work is part of First Light’s wider focus on Digital Non‑Contact Abuse, abuse that happens in online and digital spaces, even when there is no physical contact.

 

About the research

This study brings together lived experience and professional insight to understand abuse linked to online dating.

  • 131 people who use dating apps shared their experiences
  • 32 professionals shared insights from services including domestic abuse, sexual violence, policing, safeguarding, youth work, health and criminal justice

Together, these voices show how abuse that starts online is often minimised, misunderstood or not recorded, even though it has real and lasting effects.

 

When abuse starts to feel ‘normal’

Many people described harmful behaviour as something they had come to expect when using dating apps.

Our research found that:

  • Nearly 90% said being sent sexual images without consent was common or very common
  • 84% had received messages, images or videos they did not want
  • 73% had felt harassed by someone they matched with
  • 63% felt pressured to send intimate images
  • 64% felt pressured to meet in person before they were ready

“I stopped seeing it as abuse because it happened so often. It just became normal, even though it made me feel unsafe.”

People often described behaviour getting worse after they said no or set boundaries.

“When I said no, the tone immediately changed. That’s when the abuse started.”

 

Digital abuse does not need physical contact

Not everyone experienced abuse after meeting someone in person.
Many described serious harm that happened entirely online.

This included:

  • repeated unwanted messages
  • sexualised or threatening content
  • pressure, control or manipulation
  • stalking and harassment
  • sharing or threatening to share intimate images
  • pretending to be someone else

“Nothing physical happened, but it still affected everything, how I slept, how I trusted people, how safe I felt online.”

The research shows clearly that digital non‑contact abuse is real abuse, with impacts that can last long after the messages stop.

“People think it’s only serious if you meet in person  but the impact starts long before that.”

 

Low reporting and limited support

Despite how common abuse was, many people did not report it or seek help.

Our research found that:

  • Only just over half had ever reported behaviour to a dating app
  • One third did not report it at all
  • 13% wanted to report but didn’t know how
  • Around 1 in 10 contacted the police
  • Almost 60% did not know where to go for support
  • Only 14.5% had contacted a specialist organisation

Many people felt they would not be believed, or that what happened was not “serious enough”.

“I didn’t report it because I thought I was overreacting. It didn’t feel ‘bad enough’ to count.”

 

Professionals see the harm, but systems have gaps

Professionals across many services said they are seeing more online‑dating‑related abuse.
However, many also said:

  • it is not always clear whether their service can respond
  • digital abuse is recorded differently (or not at all)
  • online dating is often hidden in case notes rather than data

This means abuse can be difficult to track, understand and plan services around, leaving people without consistent support.

 

Safeguarding concerns for young people

The research also raised serious safeguarding concerns.

Despite age restrictions, 16–17‑year‑olds were found using dating platforms, with professionals reporting increasing exposure to sexualised and coercive behaviour.

These findings reflect wider risks across digital spaces and highlight the need for better protection, prevention and education.

 

Part of our wider work on Digital Non‑Contact Abuse

This research sits within First Light’s wider work on Digital Non‑Contact Abuse harm that happens across:

  • dating apps
  • social media and messaging platforms
  • gaming and live‑chat spaces
  • immersive technologies such as virtual reality (VR)
  • emerging AI‑driven technologies

As digital spaces grow and change, they must be recognised as real places where abuse happens and addressed with the same seriousness as offline harm.

 

Working together to improve responses

In response to the findings, First Light is developing new collaborative work with professional services, commissioners and partners.

This work aims to:

  • improve how digital abuse is identified
  • support clearer definitions and shared understanding
  • improve how abuse is recorded and tracked
  • create clearer, joined‑up support pathways

We invite organisations across safeguarding, health, criminal justice, education and digital regulation to be part of this work.

 

Read the full research

📄 Download the full report: Abuse from Online Dating: The Invisible Issue

If you have experienced abuse through online dating or other digital platforms, First Light is here to help.
Visit our Support pages for confidential advice and support.

 

Thank you

We thank everyone who shared their experiences and expertise. Your voices have helped make visible an issue that is too often overlooked and will inform future policy, commissioning and service responses.

This research was funded by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Gloucestershire, recognising the urgent need to address harm in digital spaces.

 

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