Gender-based violence against women with disabilities is a pressing issue that demands urgent attention at both the local, national and European levels. It is estimated that around 40 million women with disabilities are vulnerable to various forms of violence in the EU, including physical, psychological, and virtual abuse. Despite this alarming statistic, specialised and mainstream support service providers often struggle to prevent and address gender-based violence against women with disabilities in a person-centered and inclusive manner.

The Erasmus+ RESPONSE project brought together partners from 6 EU countries to address this critical gap by providing awareness raising and capacity building to service providers for persons with disabilities, mainstream services in the health, social care and judicial sectors, and women with disabilities. By enabling the exchange of knowledge between the disability sector and the victims' rights sector, RESPONSE created a collaborative space for joint learning, cooperation, and effective responses to this issue.

With the RESPONSE final conference, we aim to bring together policymakers, experts, professionals, and stakeholders from various sectors to foster dialogue, share best practices, and chart a way forward in addressing gender-based violence against women with disabilities. Throughout the conference, participants will have the opportunity to engage in informative sessions about the RESPONSE project activities and outputs, as well as exchange feedback and dialogue through a networking lunch.