Q. Why is it only for girls and women?
A. Many women and girls will experience situations where they feel threatened or are unsafe. Because of societal attitudes women and girls are at risk for reasons directly related to their gender. These specially designed courses offer practical and effective ways to deal with fear and with situations ranging from obscene phone calls to rape attacks. These courses provide a safe environment where women and girls can learn how to keep themselves and their families safe.
Q. How do I know that this person is safe to teach my daughter?
A. All teachers are fully trained and qualified Self Defence instructors. All have been police checked. The have met national accreditation standards and are active in ongoing professional development. All girls who do our Self Defence courses complete a written evaluation and all teachers’ evaluations are monitored regularly.
Women’s Self Defence-Wahine Toa has a commitment to providing excellent and appropriate Self Defence Training
Q. What will I learn from this course?
A. You will learn mental, verbal, physical skills to both identify situations where you may be at risk and the strategies to deal effectively with these. We teach this in ways which are positive and empowering.
Q. How long is the course?
A. Girls courses:
- Year 3 - 4 : 5 hour course
- Year 7 - 8 : 8 hour course
- Year 10 - 11 - 12 : 5 hour course
Full adult women’s courses:
The duration of the course can be tailored to meet the needs of each individual group.
Q. What should I wear to the course?
A. Wear comfortable clothes to move around in. Often women and girls may choose to wear trackpants or jeans or other casual clothing
Q. Do I need to be fit?
A. Absolutely not. Women and girls of all ages and physical abilities can learn effective self defence strategies.
Q. How can I get a course at my/my daughter’s school?
A. You can approach your local Self Defence teacher via the national coordinator Alternatively you can tell the school about the Girls’ Self Defence Project or Pipi courses and request that they organise a course.
Q. As an employer, how can I help the safety of the women who work for me?
A. You can arrange a course for the women at your workplace, held fully or partly during work hours. If you have at least 10 women in your workplace you may be able to have a course exclusively for your women staff. If you have fewer than 10 women you might be able to join with another workplace or fund your women staff to attend a public women’s course. Other ideas of ways you could help include seeking the views of your women re possible safety improvements in the workplace e.g. better lighting in carpark.
Q. Who attends these courses?
A. Women of all ages and girls aged 7 years and older.
Women of diverse ethnicities and cultural backgrounds and of differing physical abilities.
Where appropriate courses can be specifically designed for groups with particular needs.