After a successful launch of the “Do you get consent?” campaign in February 2020, we are excited to announce the launch of our second campaign “The A-Z of Consent”

The A-Z of Consent provides key consent facts for each letter of the alphabet, addressing a number of consent themes that have been identified during the last year. The more you know, the more you can influence positive change. By raising the awareness of consent, we can start to create a culture where consent is at the centre of all relationships.

Since the launch of our first campaign in February 2020 until now, much has changed in the world of dating, relationships, and sexual activity. We have seen an increase in the number of people staying at home and utilising dating apps and messaging platforms.

The A-Z campaign has been strategically created to embrace the changing world that we live in and to highlight that consent still matters even if the platforms have changed. This new campaign includes related themes such as dating apps, photos, filming, and messaging. It also embraces themes such as intersectionality and being supportive of everyone, regardless of their identities; another theme that was very prevalent this past year.

The initial campaign will run over an 8-week period and is hosted on our website, where you can find a downloadable poster for each letter and more information about each theme. All the A-Z of Consent posters and resources can be downloaded for free and shared locally, regionally and nationally. We will be releasing the content on our social media platforms, where you can share from as well.

Supporting the campaign, Commissioner Henry said: “While consent may seem a simple concept to most, there continues to be a lack of awareness, respect and understanding about what it really means, as evidenced by the many prosecutions through our courts every year.

“People need to understand sex without consent is rape – and that includes within a relationship. There is no justification and no excuses. Consent impacts everyone, from married couples and friends through to new and long-term partners.

“This campaign will discuss consent in an open and transparent way to encourage people make the right choices. I am determined to do everything necessary to protect people from the trauma of rape and sexual crime and this includes taking a proactive approach to ensure people are better-informed of their responsibilities and the law.”

Cllr Neghat Khan, Nottingham City Council’s DSVA Portfolio Holder, said: “Communication, honesty and respect are key to healthy sexual relationships. But why is consent so important? Without consent, sexual activity is sexual violence.

“In Nottingham we are committed to taking a zero tolerance stance against sexual violence and abuse, not only does that include supporting survivors, challenging perpetrators but educating everyone on the importance of consent.

“Consent should be at the heart of all relationships and it is an agreement between people engaging in sexual activity, where everyone involved has the freedom and capacity to make a choice.

“Nottingham City Council is dedicated to protecting and educating people and therefore we are delighted to support the Consent Coalitions new A-Z of Consent campaign. The campaign contains a number of important consent messages, covering areas such as sharing of images, victim blaming, coercion and choice. The A-Z of Consent is a fantastic educational resource and we hope that people will embrace this campaign and share our vision of being a city free from sexual violence.”

Call to Action!
As with all good things consent is based around communication.  The resources have been created so that we can keep adding information over the coming weeks and months.  If anyone wants to suggest more words do let us know!

Please help us to share positive messages about consent and help everyone joining in the conversation.  Our A-Z of Consent resources are all free to use and are downloadable from our website.  We can also send out social media packs for Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, which you can keep to use now and in the future.

Thanks
We’d like to send a special thank you to all the members of the Consent Coalition for all the hard work they have done to create these resources. In a world where health and wellbeing has been at the forefront of everyone’s minds, we are proud to be continuing the conversation on consent and creating safer, healthier, and respectful communities.

Links:
The links to the Consent Coalition website and A-Z of Consent Campaign are below:
Consent Coalition Website Link: https://nottssvss.org.uk/consent-coalition/
A-Z of Consent Campaign Link: https://nottssvss.org.uk/consent-coalition/campaigns/az-consent/
Consent Coalition Contact Details: consentcoalitionnotts@outlook.com
Consent Coalition Social Media Handle: ConsentInNotts

The Consent Coalition stands together to say that Nottingham does not tolerate any form of sexual violence