Understanding Survival Sex
An interactive training session exploring the concept of survival sex and how it can enhance the support you provide to women.
In this interactive training session, we explore the concept of survival sex. We look at what it is, why women might be involved in survival sex, and how understanding this term can enhance the support you provide to women. You will gain an understanding of what barriers women might be facing when accessing support services and will unpack what good practice in supporting those engaged in survival sex looks like. The session includes shared scenarios to practice and embed learning. By the end of the session, you will have gained confidence and skills to help you approach the subject of the sex industry with women and identify when it is the right time to do so.
This training is suitable for professionals from local authorities, statutory services and the charity sector who want to learn more about a woman-centred, trauma-informed approach to working alongside women. No existing experience of working with women involved in the sex industry is necessary. This training is also appropriate for those who are responsible for commissioning services for women.
The content is shaped by 25 years of practice and our continual bias of learning from women with Lived Experience.
Max number of participants – Places are limited to 20 in order to keep it interactive.
Please attend with one screen per person and a headset wherever possible. We strongly advise that you access the training from a computer rather than a mobile phone to ensure you are able to benefit from all the interactive elements of the training.
To build trust and support the interactive nature of our training, we ask participants to attend with camera on. If there is a reason why you need your camera off, please do contact us in advance and let us know and we’ll be happy to accommodate that.
This event will take place on Microsoft Teams. The Microsoft Teams session will open at 09:25 to allow a settling in time for a prompt start at 09:30.
Eventbrite will send reminder emails ahead of the session with a Teams access link. If you have never used Eventbrite before it may ask you to create a free account.
About Beyond the Streets
Beyond the Streets is a UK charity working to see a society where everyone is able to live safe and independent lives, free from the structural inequalities and societal norms that compel women into selling sex. With over 25 years’ experience of partnering with women in the sex industry, we deliver trauma-informed, person-centred support, provide training for the third sector and statutory professionals, and create resources and reports informed by research, lived experience, and practitioner experience. Our training and partnership work seeks to equip professionals to understand the sex industry, particularly survival sex, and to support them to engage with women selling sex in a trauma-informed way.
About the Trainers
Your trainers for the session will be Katie Thorlby and Alice Rudolph.
Katie is the Director of Impact and Learning at Beyond the Streets and has been part of the Senior Leadership Team since 2017. She has a PhD from the University of Durham which explored routes out of the sex industry. She is responsible for developing and leading innovative research projects and partnerships to inform service delivery, training and policy development and has served as an Expert Panel member on several Domestic Abuse Related Death Reviews.
Alice is a Service Manager at Beyond the Streets, where she manages Beyond Support, the national telephone service for women who sell sex on and off the streets. She previously worked as a Service Manager at Women in Prison, supporting women impacted by the criminal justice system, with a particular focus on substance use and through-the-gate support. Alice is passionate about creating trauma-informed services that work alongside women to overcome systemic barriers and build stability and independence.
Important information for self-care
Please be aware that the content of the training includes discussion of sexual exploitation, domestic abuse, addiction, child sexual abuse and death by suicide. Whilst we seek to discuss this in a way that is respectful and trauma-informed, we appreciate that participants may find it emotionally challenging and distressing. During the training, we encourage participants to turn off cameras temporarily or step away from the session in order to look after themselves and feel as grounded as possible. We also suggest building in a 30 min-1 hour window after the training before you are expected to resume your usual duties to allow yourself some time to process the content covered.
Terms and Conditions
If you are booking a place for someone else, please make sure to add their name & email address so that they receive the email with access links.
Beyond the Streets reserves the right to cancel / postpone an event at anytime. If we have to cancel / postpone up to 2 weeks before the due date, we will either offer you a refund or reserve you a place on another date.
If you cancel with less than 2 weeks before the due date no refund or place will be offered. For more information contact training@beyondthestreets.org.uk.