Women in Oldham were urged to make personal safety a priority during a recent CROWN networking event at The Hive business hub. The event brought together local businesswomen and community figures for talks from self-protection trainer Jessica Jones and former teacher Jenny Begley.

Jessica Jones, founder of the Amazonian School of Self Protection, spoke about the importance of self-protection over self-defence. She described it as a broader approach focused on awareness, boundaries, and avoiding dangerous situations. "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," she said.

Jones emphasised that women should treat personal safety with the same importance as protecting possessions. "Your body is yours. Yours to keep safe. Yours to protect. And it is the one thing that is irreplaceable," she told the audience. "Women need to re-align their focus and make protecting themselves a real priority." Her journey into self-protection teaching began after training in Krav Maga in 2016, leading her to open Amazonia in 2021.

Guests also heard from Jenny Begley, a volunteer and former schoolteacher. She spoke about barriers she faced as a woman in education, recalling how Sheffield University initially refused to recognise her achievements. "But Sheffield University refused to recognise it, because we were women," Begley said. She and her fellow graduates continued campaigning and eventually received formal recognition in 2025, marked by a presentation and parade through Sheffield.

The event was organised by Upturn as part of the CROWN programme, which aims to connect women in business and support 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."

The CROWN programme meets monthly at The Hive business hub, located on the second floor of Spindles Shopping Centre in Oldham. This venue provides a central space for local women to network and support each other.