International Women’s Day: Together we can Accelerate Action 

We love that the theme for International Women’s Day 2025 is ‘Accelerate Action’. We stand with this call for increased momentum and urgency in addressing the systemic barriers and biases that women face, both in personal and professional spheres. 

At YMCA Exeter we’ve created fantastic courses for each of our residents in Stage 1 Housing to participate in. From Healthy Relationships to Boundaries, Budgeting and Wellbeing, in each of these courses we call out stereotypes, question bias and help women and men to make informed decisions.   

Our Healthy Relationships course covers domestic violence, consent, and society’s expectations on women.  

19-year-old Sami took part in the Healthy Relationships course and is halfway through the Boundaries course, 

“I’ve really enjoyed these courses and we’ve covered so much,” says Sami. “We’ve looked at the way women are viewed, statistics around the pay gap, looking at setting boundaries and understanding how communication is so vital around consent.   

“Last year I took part in Exeter’s Reclaim the Night march. We marched through the city centre to challenge sexual violence, street harassment and other forms of violence that predominately target women and girls.  

“It’s so important for us to not be afraid to speak out. And that’s why I really enjoyed the Healthy Relationships course as we explored different types of abuse from physical and financial to verbal and psychological and also discussed how men can call out violence against women.” 

Find out more about YMCA Exeter’s Stage 1 Supported Housing