Ignite Your Power to host women's self-defence session

A free self-defence taster session is being held in Andover next month to help women boost their confidence and personal safety.

Ignite Your Power CIC, a local non-profit organisation, will host the session on Wednesday, April 15, from 6pm to 7pm at The Power Word International Church on East Street. The event is open to women aged 15 and over.

Charlotte Male, director and founder of Ignite Your Power, said the group will celebrate its second anniversary in June and continues to expand its community projects across Andover and wider Hampshire.

She said: "Our focus and passion is all around self-defence and personal safety awareness. We’re already running a workshop in Picket Twenty but we’re looking to reach new audiences and offer wider community projects around personal safety."

Test Valley Borough councillor for St Mary’s ward, Iris Andersen, praised the initiative, saying: "This is all about awareness. You never know what could happen, and it’s so important women know how to protect themselves, especially late at night when lights are off and transport options can be limited."

Ms Male said recent local events had shown how vital women’s safety training has become.

She said: "After our last workshop on International Women’s Day, we had loads of women attend, and since a recent incident, around 25 more have reached out asking when the next one would be."

An incident reported by Hampshire Police on Monday, March 2, involved a kidnapping in Andover, which Ms Male said had brought safety concerns back into focus.

"It really highlighted that this is needed," she added. "It used to be that women were attacked in dark alleyways, but now we’re seeing incidents happen in broad daylight. The psychology of attackers has changed, and the fear of being caught isn’t what it used to be.

"It is really important that everybody feels protected and safe in their environment."

The April session will allow attendees to experience the training, share feedback, and help the group plan future workshops based on community interest.