BOURNEMOUTH
Sister Supporter Bournemouth are currently campaigning for a #bufferzone to #endharassment at the BPAS clinic on Ophir Road, Bournemouth and need YOUR HELP.
What exactly is happening?
From baby clothes being left on bushes, to staff and service users followed and groups of monks praying right outside; the clinic suffers some of the worst anti-choice harassment in the UK.
We’ve created an Evidence Pack which illustrates some of the behaviours and tactics used at the clinic. (Warning: this contains graphic content which some people may find distressing).
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) council are holding a public consultation for buffer zone options from 20th July to 31st August.
It is crucial that you make your voice heard. Public consultations are used to gather the public’s opinion on what next steps to take on an issue before a final decision is made by the Council cabinet. We expect the decision - about whether there should be a buffer zone in Bournemouth, and what it should look like, - to be made in mid- September.
The buffer zone options are as follows:
To exclude all protesting within a safe zone around the clinic with no designated protest zone
To exclude all protesting within a safe zone around the clinic but to include a permitted area for protestors to gather directly opposite the clinic
To exclude all protesting within a safe zone around the clinic but to include permitted areas for protestors to gather out-of-sight of the clinic (the next road over and the other side of the dual carriageway adjacent to the clinic)
We have shared a response below you can follow when completing the online public consultation form which agrees with option 1 and opposes options 2 and 3.
It is very important that you personalise your response, as individual responses carry more weight than identical ones. You can copy and paste the entire examples below, take a couple of paragraphs, or just use them for inspiration for your own reply. Whatever you decide, just make sure it’s customised to you.
If you’d like to see how the form works in advance you can view this quick video tutorial.
And here is the link to the public consultation form:
https://haveyoursay.bcpcouncil.gov.uk/ophir-road-pspo
Sister Supporter’s Consultation Response
We selected: Strongly support
Please explain why…
We said that we “strongly support the proposal for a PSPO around the BPAS building in Bournemouth because staff working at the clinic and people who need to use abortion services should be able to do so without harassment, intimidation and interference. People who live nearby should also not have to face disruption to their daily lives from anti-abortion activitsts.”
We selected: “Option 1” for both answers.
Please explain the reasons…
We said: “A buffer zone with no designated areas is the only acceptable option because allowing any allocated spaces for anti-abortion activities means that people who work at the clinic, use its services or live in the nearby area will still be subjected to harassment, intimidation and disruption. Only a complete buffer zone will properly protect them.
The Clinic location on Ophir Road would make it really difficult for a designated area to work in practice, without making the whole buffer zone pointless.
Anti-abortion groups can gather outside the buffer zone, in places where they won’t be harassing anyone.
While a ‘designated area’ was provided for in Ealing, because it worked geographically, it was not provided for in buffer zones in Richmond and Manchester, and it will not work in Bournemouth.”
We selected: “Strongly support” for each answer.
In the box, we wrote “As set out above, we believe that a buffer zone with no designated areas is the only acceptable option because allowing any allocated spaces for anti-abortion activities means that people who work at the clinic, use its services or live in the nearby area will still be subjected to harassment, intimidation and disruption. Only a complete buffer zone will properly protect them.”
We selected: “Strongly support” for each answer.
We selected: “All the time”
Here, tick the boxes that apply to you
We said: “Introducing a buffer zone around the BPAS building is a realistic and fair way to prevent anti-choice harassment and interference that harms women, pregnant people and BPAS staff, and disrupts the lives of local residents. It would target and resolve a problem that Bournemouth has experienced for more than 20 years. It would show that Bournemouth cares about a woman's right to access safe and legal medical care.
It would not prevent protest, as anti-choice activists would be free to protest and make their views known anywhere outside the buffer zone. However, it would stop the deeply personal and targeted harassment that is currently happening. Bullying and shaming women into changing a decision that they have made with the help of their doctor is not the same as legitimate protest.
I believe that a buffer zone is afair response to anti-choice activists’ activities.”
(We encourage you to add your personal feelings about the anti-abortion acitivities and your hopes for the buffer zone here)
We said: “A PSPO preventing the harassment of pregnant people and women accessing the BPAS Clinic would be a positive impact of this proposal.”
THANK YOU!
PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD!
We need as many people as possible to do this, so please spread the word within your local Bournemouth networks.
Download this handy poster which includes a QR code for the consultation link, as well as our contact details.
Please also tag us in your social media posts, use the hashtag #BournemouthBuffer and follow us on our channels below to keep updated on the campaign:
THANK YOU!
For specific enquiries about the Bournemouth campaign, please contact Bournemouth@sistersupporter.co.uk.