Blue Shoes exhibition hosted in Liverpool as part of community event for Elimination of VAWG Day
12:00 - 15:00 | 25.11.26 - Liverpool Williamson Square, Liverpool city centre
A poignant and striking exhibition highlighting the devastating impact of violence against women and girls will be on display in Liverpool city centre today as part of a major community awareness event hosted by the Merseyside Police and Crime Commissioner.
The Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Community Event is taking place to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.
Held in Williamson Square, from 12pm to 3pm, the event will bring together local organisations, support services and campaigners to raise awareness, offer advice and encourage action to tackle violence against women and girls.
At the heart of this year's event will be the Blue Shoes Exhibition, an impactful installation featuring 150 pairs of blue shoes, each representing a life believed to have been lost to domestic abuse-related suicide in 2025. The colour blue symbolises both feelings of depression, “feeling blue”, and the lasting impact of lives lost.
Created by Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse (AAFDA) and Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner Clive Grunshaw, and painted by Fylde Coast Women’s Aid (FCWA), the exhibition supports the campaign for Kiena's Law, which seeks stronger accountability where domestic abuse has contributed to a person's death.
The campaign was inspired by the tragic death of Kiena Dawes, whose experience highlighted the devastating and often hidden consequences of domestic abuse and prompted calls for legislative change.
Alongside the exhibition, community organisations and specialist support services from across Merseyside will be available throughout the afternoon to engage with members of the public, provide information and highlight the help available for anyone affected by abuse, harassment, stalking, sexual violence or harmful practices. A mobile police station will also be on hand in case anyone wishes to make a disclosure or access support from the police.
An advertising van and digital display screens will also feature powerful messages from the PCC and Merseyside Police's ongoing Taking Action campaign, which aims to raise awareness of domestic abuse, stalking, rape and sexual assault, challenge harmful attitudes and myths, and encourage victims and survivors to seek support.
The event forms part of the PCC’s ongoing work across Merseyside to challenge attitudes that enable violence against women and girls, support victims and survivors, and ensure perpetrators are held to account. Later in the day, a candlelit vigil will also be held in memory of all the women and girls who have lost their lives to male violence across Merseyside.
