Beds bus operator highlights partnership with local women’s charity

Stagecoach East provides free bus travel to Turtle Dove to help with its crucial work. The charity was founded by Kate Nation, based on her first-hand experience in the youth sector where she saw the effects of a system where there are twice as many young women not currently searching for jobs compared to their male peers.
She also wanted to create a safe, female-only space that offers these young women an opportunity to flourish away from the pressure of their male contemporaries.
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Hide AdRoss Barton, Operations Director of Stagecoach East, said: “We are very proud to be able to show our support for the work that Turtle Dove does in our local community. Everyone needs a bit of help and support – particularly when they are young – to truly reach their potential, so it is inspiring to see all the work that they do to help young people develop and achieve.”

Katie Fryer-Olliffe a Young Women's Development Worker at Turtle Dove added: “We are very pleased to work with Stagecoach East as we seek to fulfil our ambitious plans to drive this project forward – reaching more young women than before, offering them the opportunity to strengthen their self-confidence and work towards building successful futures. This support offers increasing accessibility to the training and support we offer, meaning that young women, who might otherwise struggle to engage, are able to.”
Last October, Stagecoach East officially became part of the Businesses Against Abuse scheme, run by Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Police Authority and the Cambridge and Peterborough Rape Crisis Centre.
Under the scheme, drivers are being trained to recognise people who are in vulnerable situations either on or off the bus – and are being given guidance in how to offer help. If a driver recognises that a women or girl may be in fear of abuse on the street, they are now authorised to pull over and ask if they need help and then take her to a safe place on route if necessary.