Newham Council has announced that it will develop a new Sex Work Strategy that puts public health at the heart of supporting vulnerable people and reducing the stigmatisation and exploitation of street and off-street Sex workers. The Council made this announcement after consulting on Sex work within the borough recently.
The new strategy will adopt a public health approach based on extensive feedback from residents across the borough, partners and experts. The Council will co-design the new Sex Work Strategy with our communities, using their vast experience and knowledge, including Sex workers.
The Council will partner with people with lived experience, residents and experts to conduct a needs assessment as part of the first phase of work. This assessment will determine the scale and nature of Sex work across Newham and identify local needs, gaps and wider community impact. The Council will then develop a comprehensive and holistic strategy. The Council will also review best practices locally, nationally, and internationally to find solutions for Newham.
The Strategy will acknowledge sensitively the complexity of prostitution and the diversity of people involved who are at risk of harm. It will also support the Council’s recently published Domestic Abuse Strategy and the existing preventative measures to stop violence against women and girls and the exploitation of vulnerable individuals.
Councillor Neil Wilson, Cabinet Member for Adults and Social Care, stated: “We will adopt a public health approach to devise a new Sex Work strategy in collaboration with experts and individuals who have lived experiences. The needs assessment will enable us to comprehend the intricacies, difficulties and harms that street and off-street Sex work entail, as well as the impact on our communities. We will not proceed with the Public Space Protection Order consultation results that we will publish shortly, because we aim to formulate a Sex Work strategy that is comprehensive and offers long-term sustainable solutions to mitigate the harmful effects of Sex work for Sex workers and local residents alike.”
The development of the new Sex Work strategy will take place over the next 10 months, and will incorporate a formal consultation. A final Sex Work strategy will be issued in Spring 2024.
As the Council initiates the needs assessment and co-design stages of the Sex Work strategy, it remains dedicated to supporting street Sex workers through existing commissioned services that provide specialist and outreach-based provisions as well as access to safe spaces in the north of the borough. The Council will also persist in working with residents affected by Sex work to address community safety concerns sensitively.