Glasgow women offered self-defence classes to build confidence and safety

Women in Glasgow are being given the opportunity to learn practical self-defence skills thanks to a new series of classes.

The sessions – aimed at building confidence, strength and empowerment – are being organised every two months by the social community Glasglow Girls Club.

They’re designed to teach women ways to defend themselves through the disciplines of jiu jitsu and boxing, led by female coaches.

Glasglow Girls Club founder Laura Maginess says it’s something she’s wanted to do for a while, after seeing safety concerns increasingly raised within the 50,000-member community.

“We see members talking about concerns for safety – growing concerns for safety – and we feel a bit of a duty of care around that,” Laura told STV News.

“We hope our members never have to use what they’re being taught today.

“But there’s something to be said for having the knowledge and I think knowledge is power.”

She adds: “What we’re looking to do with these self-defence classes is really empower our members with practical self-defence skills which will make them feel more confident in their everyday life.

“We are not creating a solution for the problem against violence of women and girls in marginalised societies. But what we’re hoping to do is just give these women some confidence.”

The classes aren’t just about being able to fight off danger – they also aim to deliver the Glasglow Girls Club’s wider mission to create spaces where women feel stronger, more confident and more connected.

Jennifer Mackenzie, a qualified boxing trainer and fighter, uses the sport as a tool to help women rebuild confidence, resilience and self-belief.

“I’m such a big advocate for women feeling confident, women feeling safe,” said Jennifer.

“And I also think a lot of women should get into sports like this a wee bit more, so anything like that that I can support, I’m up for it.

“Boxing brought all my confidence back to me, and I just want to pass that on to other women.”

Those sentiments are echoed by fellow boxer Leanne Kelly, who is also sponsoring the sessions and helped bring the idea to life.

“To just feel safer and to have confidence, that’s my biggest aim [for the women],” Leanne says.

“To inspire women to feel that they can step into a boxing gym, a jujitsu gym and be part of it, and just have that confidence to step out into the street and not feel nervous about someone attacking them.

“It’s a horrible world we live in, let’s be honest.”

She added: “I had some tough life things going on and boxing just was a safe place for me.

“I feel like a totally different person since I took up this sport.”

The jiu jitsu side of the sessions is being led by athlete and gold medal champion Buffy Price.

“It’s great to show girls how to defend themselves – it’s becoming more important now, more than ever,” explained Buffy.

“I think Glasgow’s a really scary place to be living right now, especially for lone females at night. There’s news articles every weekend about something negative happening, unfortunately.

“I want women to feel confident in being able to defend themselves and being realistic about it as well. What’s something that’s actually going to work and actually going to, like, put an opponent down?”

The sessions are available to members of the Glasglow Girls Club, as well as Glow Club business members, and are held every two months.

The next class takes place on Saturday, April 11.