Oldham women urged to make personal safety a priority at CROWN event

CROWN

Women in Oldham were encouraged to put greater focus on personal safety and self protection during a CROWN networking event bringing together local businesswomen and community figures.

The event at the Hive business hub featured talks from self protection trainer Jessica Jones and volunteer and former teacher Jenny Begley.

Guests attending the CROWN programme heard from Jessica Jones, founder of the Amazonian School of Self Protection, who urged women to treat their own safety with the same importance as protecting possessions and property.

Jones spoke about the difference between self defence and self protection, describing it as a broader approach focused on awareness, boundaries and avoiding dangerous situations where possible.

She said, “Your body is yours. Yours to keep safe. Yours to protect. And it is the one thing that is irreplaceable.”

She added, “Self protection is not about fighting, which is normally carried out between two consenting people. It’s the whole 360 approach to everything to do with your safety, recognising red flags, managing boundaries, even on first dates, how to react to your environment, and avoiding violence altogether. Women need to re align their focus and make protecting themselves a real priority.”

Jessica explained that her journey into teaching began after training in Krav Maga in 2016 before opening Amazonia in 2021 following further study in self protection techniques.

Guests also heard from local volunteer Jenny Begley, a former Cheshire netball player and schoolteacher, who spoke about barriers faced by women during her education.

Begley said, “But Sheffield University refused to recognise it, because we were women.”

She told guests she and fellow graduates continued campaigning and eventually received formal recognition decades later with a presentation and parade through Sheffield in 2025.

The event was organised by Upturn as part of its CROWN programme, which aims to connect women in business and support wider community involvement.

Maria Williams, founder of CROWN, said, “Our aim was to showcase the best of women, so that we can inspire the current and next generations. You will have to go a long way to find someone as utterly inspirational as Jenny and Jessica.”

CROWN meets monthly at the Hive business hub on the second floor of Spindles Shopping Centre in Oldham.