Merton Council has partnered with a gender justice organisation to challenge toxic masculinity attitudes within the borough’s primary and secondary schools.
Voicebox has been working in collaboration with SaferMerton, a council and police joint project, to implement interactive workshops and teacher workshops, encouraging boys to engage with healthy masculinity.
This ideal is promoted amidst the backdrop of rising VAWG (violence against women and girls) cases in the UK, with the Labour government promising to halve crimes against women and girls by the end of the decade.
Healthy Masculinity workshops took place in six primary schools and three secondary schools across Merton.
Workshop leader Will Hudson said: “We try to teach masculinity as being more about a human experience rather than a certain set of characteristics.
“[VoiceBox] is taking a positive angle on it, trying to help young men and young people in general in moving towards embracing authenticity and their own personal values.”
Set-up in 2018, Voicebox run interactive workshops in schools to address traditional ideas surrounding gender, unhealthy relationships and bullying mentalities amongst boys.
Interactive games are paired with discussions, where the young men are encouraged to share their own preconceptions surrounding masculinity, with the expectation of changing their minds.
Alongside their workshops, they pioneered the student-led Healthy Masculinity Leaders Programme with Epsom College, encouraging young people to promote healthy masculinity within their peer group and wider school community.
The release of the highly acclaimed Netflix drama Adolescence in March opened up discussions about toxic masculinity and male violence, particularly within the British school system.
Centring around a 14-year-old boy accused of murdering a girl in his class, the TV series depicts how the ‘manosphere’ and influencers such as Andrew Tate shape the minds of young men on social media in 2025.
A relatively new term, the ‘manosphere’ refers to the collection of online posts, influencers and ideas promoting masculinity, brute strength and misogyny rooted in incel culture.
In response to the series, prime minister Keir Starmer even hosted a Downing Street meeting with the creator, Jack Thorne, to discuss the influence of toxic online material on young people today.
This comes after statistics show rising VAWG in England and Wales.
There were 3,000 VAWG offences a day recorded by police in 2022-2023, according to data released by the National Police Chiefs’ Council in July 2024, representing an increase of 37% from 2018.
Hudson referred to Adolescence as a pivotal piece of media in the discussion about masculinity and emphasises the need to move the discussion away from blaming boys for toxic behaviour, instead trying to understand the root cause.
To further consolidate their message, Voicebox held an open meeting, inviting councillors and organisations to hear about the latest updates to their work and how they are furthering their workshops in schools in the future.
One organisation attending the meeting was Everyone’s Invited, a charity founded by Soma Sara, with the aim to discuss and eradicate sexual abuse and rape culture from British universities, secondary and even primary schools.
One way in which they aim to raise awareness is through the publication of survivors testimonials and lists which name every primary and secondary school where a survivor of sexual abuse has anonymously come forward.
In response to hearing about Voicebox’s work in schools, the charity said their deconstruction of gender norms has real life consequences, helping to make everyone safer and more comfortable.
Meeting attendee Ness said: “It was a fantastic project. I particularly liked the onus put on young people to discover their own personal values.
“Ensuring young people are able to turn towards values that ring true for them is critical.”
They also recognised the shared work between the two charities, stating both aim to address uncomfortable topics of abuse from a place of compassion, not shaming boys for their behaviour.
Alongside Voicebox’s work with students, they also run healthy masculinity teacher training programmes within Merton as they want to emphasise the role of community in shaping masculinity and gendered attitudes.
Merton Council representative Zara Bishop said: “The project sounds really interesting and like it’s making a real difference to the lives of young men in Merton.”
Bishop added the council’s White Ribbon accreditation further showed their commitment to reducing VAWG through meaningful action.
Merton’s Councillor Edith Macauley said: “Our partnership with Voicebox has started a series of important conversations about what masculinity means for young people.
“We’ve worked with hundreds of students in schools and youth centres across Merton during a series of pioneering workshops to explore attitudes about masculinity, tackle misogyny and promote gender equality, with the aim of helping everyone to feel safer.
“Healthy masculinity and male allyship are important ways to help reduce violence against women and girls, which is one of our key priorities as a White Ribbon accredited organisation.”
Featured image: Voicebox
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