Action Breaks Silence
Action Breaks Silence is a UK-based educational charity delivering prevention education and empowerment self-defence programmes addressing violence against women and girls, operating in schools, corporates, and community settings across the UK, India, and South Africa.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersWembley, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Action Breaks Silence does
Action Breaks Silence (legal entity: Actions Breaks Silence Ltd; charity number 1158744, company number 08686204) is a non-profit educational charity registered in England and Wales, founded in July 2013 by survivor and MA-qualified practitioner Debi Steven. The charity addresses violence against women and girls (VAWG) by delivering prevention education and empowerment self-defence workshops to schools, corporate clients, and community organisations. Its core offering is the Action Breaks Silence Community Intervention, a multi-pronged framework grounded in Social Norms and Active Bystander Theories, comprising five interconnected programmes: the Train-the-Trainer Programme, the Primary Schools Programme to end VAWG (delivered via the Whole Schools Approach originally co-developed with the AVA Project), the Youth Ambassador Programme, the Empowerment Through Self-Defence Workshop (offered at basic, Level 2, youth/parent, mixed gender, corporate, and community tiers), and the Undefining Masculinity Workshop. The Youth Ambassador Programme is supported by a proprietary eLearning portal (yap.actionbreakssilence.org) built on Svelte, providing self-serve digital upskilling.
The business model is donation-dependent with diversified revenue streams. The organisation receives no government funding and instead draws on individual donations (including legacy gifts), corporate partnerships (notably FTI Consulting as 2016-2017 Charity of the Year raising £32,000+), freemium workshop delivery to state schools in the top 20% most deprived UK areas, fee-based workshops for private schools and corporates, and Trainer-of-Trainers licensing to international NGO partners. Channel distribution is direct: workshops are delivered in-person by ABS trainers in schools, corporates, and community venues, with international scaling via NGO partnership affiliates in India (the co-founded Action Breaks Silence Foundation) and South Africa (Diepsloot, Soweto, Pretoria).
Action Breaks Silence firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Action Breaks Silence
- Legal name
- Actions Breaks Silence Ltd
- Website
- https://actionbreakssilence.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Action Breaks Silence is a UK-based educational charity delivering prevention education and empowerment self-defence programmes addressing violence against women and girls, operating in schools, corporates, and community settings across the UK, India, and South Africa.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Action Breaks Silence industry classification
Industry- Product category
- VAWG Prevention Education and Empowerment Self-Defence Services
- NAICS
- Human Rights Organizations (813311), Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Services (611)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Gender Equality & Women’s Empowerment (BPAGABAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Child Protection & Child Rights (BPAGABAG), Crisis Response & Threat Assessment (Suicide Prevention, Violence Prevention) (EDAJAIAH), Restorative Practices, Conflict Resolution & Discipline Alternatives (EDAKAMAG), Dropout Prevention, Re-Engagement & Truancy Intervention Programs (EDAJAEAD)
Keywords
Where Action Breaks Silence is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Wembley
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Action Breaks Silence business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Donations and Charitable Contributions: Action Breaks Silence receives no government funding and relies on donations from individuals, corporate supporters, and partners who share core principles of Equality, Respect and Inclusivity. The organisation runs DIY fundraising workshops and accepts legacy gifts.
- Corporate Partnerships: Corporate partnerships provide funding, employee volunteering opportunities, team-building activities, and help companies meet corporate responsibility objectives. FTI Consulting raised over £32,000 as Charity of the Year partner (2016-2017).
- NGO Partnerships and Trainer of Trainers Programme: International NGO partnerships where ABS trains local instructors to deliver programmes, extending reach and ensuring sustainability through a Trainer of Trainers model.
- Workshop Fees: Workshops are free for state schools operating within the top 20% most deprived areas in the UK's indices of deprivation. Private schools and corporates pay for workshop delivery.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | One time | Free workshops for eligible state schools |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Fee-based workshops for private schools and corporates |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Action Breaks Silence product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Action Breaks Silence is a UK educational charity that delivers violence-against-women-and-girls (VAWG) prevention education and empowerment self-defence workshops in schools, colleges, corporates, and communities. Core deliverable programmes include the Youth Ambassador Programme (YAP) with its eLearning peer-education platform, Train-the-Trainer licensing, Undefining Masculinity workshops, and tailored corporate and community self-defence workshops delivered across the UK and India.
Product overview
Action Breaks Silence is an educational charity delivering a multi-pronged community intervention to end violence against women and girls (VAWG). The core offering consists of five interconnected programmes: (1) the Train-the-Trainer Programme that upskills young adults to become programme deliverers, (2) the Primary Schools Programme to end VAWG using a whole-school approach, (3) the Youth Ambassador Programme (YAP) with an associated eLearning portal, (4) Empowerment Through Self-Defence Workshops offered at multiple levels (basic, Level 2, youth/parent, mixed gender, corporate, and community variants), and (5) the Undefining Masculinity Workshop for promoting healthy masculinity. These programmes are underpinned by downloadable Theory of Change resources and are delivered through schools, corporates, and community settings with targeted strategies addressing gender inequality and toxic masculinity.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Youth Ambassador Programme (YAP) A peer-education programme that trains young people to act as Youth Ambassadors delivering violence-prevention messaging, supported by an associated eLearning portal that enables remote learning and scale-up of peer education. Targeted at schools, colleges, and youth organisations working with adolescents.
- Empowerment Self-Defence Workshops The charity's flagship in-person training offering, teaching practical physical and verbal self-defence skills rooted in a trauma-informed, survivor-led approach. Delivered to girls, women, and young people in schools, colleges, corporate workplaces, and community settings across the UK, with specialist variants tailored to different audiences and risk profiles.
- Train-the-Trainer Programme A licensed instructor-development programme that trains partner staff and external instructors to deliver Action Breaks Silence's self-defence and violence-prevention curriculum. Used to scale delivery through partner organisations in the UK and internationally, including collaborations with the Delhi Police and Indian state governments.
- Undefining Masculinity Workshops A specialist workshop series aimed at boys and men that explores masculinity, consent, and bystander responsibility as part of violence prevention. Delivered in schools, community groups, and corporate settings as a complement to the women's and girls' empowerment workshops.
Quantifiable outcome
- 3,500 women and girls taught through Empowerment through Self-Defence workshops in Mumbai, India (2014)
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Action Breaks Silence
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Action Breaks Silence technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
Action Breaks Silence partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- FTI ConsultingcoreFTI Consulting named ABS as their Charity of the Year partner for 2016-2017. Staff raised over £32,000 for ABS, the most they had ever raised for a charity. The partnership included employee volunteering and fundraising activities.
- CFS Wills LimitedminorABS partnered with CFS Wills Limited for will-making services. CFS Wills Direct software allows users to create simple wills in 15 minutes. CFS Wills Limited donates 50% of any profit from users writing wills through the partnership to Action Breaks Silence.
- Guildford HSminorListed as a supporter of Action Breaks Silence.
- City Bridge FoundationcoreListed as a key supporter/funder of Action Breaks Silence.
- London YouthminorListed as a supporter of Action Breaks Silence.
- Living Wage FoundationminorListed as a supporter of Action Breaks Silence.
- PeabodyminorListed as a supporter of Action Breaks Silence.
- SkaddenminorListed as a supporter of Action Breaks Silence.
- Debevoise & PlimptonminorListed as a supporter of Action Breaks Silence.
- International NGO PartnerscoreABS works with partner NGOs through the Trainer of Trainers programme. ABS trainers teach selected groups of local instructors to deliver Empowerment Through Self-Defence and Hero Empathy workshops in local schools, afterschool clubs, and community organisations. Operations confirmed in India (Action Breaks Silence Foundation), South Africa (Diepsloot, Soweto, Pretoria), and UK.
- AVA ProjectcoreAction Breaks Silence uses the 'Whole Schools Approach' framework developed by the AVA Project to engage, educate and empower all members of a school community.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Action Breaks Silence competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- NIA Project: North London charity providing holistic VAWG services including education and prevention. NIA's community-based, survivor-led model and focus on disadvantaged communities is closely comparable to ABS's community delivery approach.
- White Ribbon UK: UK campaign engaging men and boys to end violence against women. White Ribbon's 'Undefining Masculinity'-adjacent focus on healthy masculinity and bystander intervention makes it a direct thematic peer competing for the same school and corporate prevention budgets.
- Imkaan: UK federation supporting Black and minoritised women survivors of VAWG. Imkaan overlaps with ABS's community-led, survivor-involved delivery model and serves comparable at-risk community segments, particularly in London.
- Southall Black Sisters: Long-standing London charity providing advocacy, education, and campaigning on VAWG in Black and minoritised communities. Shares with ABS a focus on empowerment, survivor-led approaches, and London-based community delivery.
- AVA (Against Violence & Abuse): UK charity providing training, resources, and the 'Whole Schools Approach' framework that ABS itself references. AVA is both a peer and a methodology source, competing for the same prevention training contracts with schools and local authorities.
- Tender: UK charity delivering preventative education in schools to address sexual violence and domestic abuse. Tender is the closest direct peer — both run whole-school VAWG prevention programmes with age-appropriate curricula and trainer networks, competing for the same school procurement budgets.
Broad incumbents
- Women's Aid: The UK's largest domestic abuse federation, running prevention education alongside refuge services. Women's Aid is a broader incumbent with statutory funding and policy influence that ABS lacks, but operates overlapping VAWG prevention education programmes in schools and communities.
- Refuge: Major UK VAWG charity providing specialist services including refuge accommodation, advocacy, and education. Refuge overlaps with ABS on the preventative education and awareness side but operates at much greater scale with government and statutory funding.
- Respect: UK charity working with perpetrators, survivors, and young people around domestic abuse. Respect's youth-focused behaviour-change work intersects with ABS's school programmes, particularly around harmful sexual behaviour and healthy relationships education.
- SafeLives: UK charity focused on ending domestic abuse with training, research, and accreditation programmes for professionals. SafeLives overlaps with ABS on training delivery and prevention advocacy, but operates primarily at a professional/practitioner level rather than direct school delivery.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Action Breaks Silence social profiles
Digital presenceAction Breaks Silence compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Action Breaks Silence financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Action Breaks Silence leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Action Breaks Silence subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Action Breaks Silence funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Action Breaks Silence M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Action Breaks Silence
What does Action Breaks Silence do?
Action Breaks Silence is a UK educational charity that delivers violence-against-women-and-girls (VAWG) prevention education and empowerment self-defence workshops in schools, colleges, corporates, and communities. Core deliverable programmes include the Youth Ambassador Programme (YAP) with its eLearning peer-education platform, Train-the-Trainer licensing, Undefining Masculinity workshops, and tailored corporate and community self-defence workshops delivered across the UK and India.
Is Action Breaks Silence a public or private company?
Action Breaks Silence is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Action Breaks Silence founded?
Action Breaks Silence was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Action Breaks Silence based?
Action Breaks Silence is headquartered in Wembley, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Action Breaks Silence make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Donations and Charitable Contributions are the primary driver. The others are corporate Partnerships, NGO Partnerships and Trainer of Trainers Programme and workshop Fees.
Who are Action Breaks Silence's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are NIA Project, White Ribbon UK, Imkaan, Southall Black Sisters, AVA (Against Violence & Abuse) and Tender. Broad incumbents are Women's Aid, Refuge, Respect and SafeLives.
Does Action Breaks Silence have an API?
No public API is recorded for Action Breaks Silence.
What industry is Action Breaks Silence in?
Action Breaks Silence's product category is VAWG Prevention Education and Empowerment Self-Defence Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGABAF, Gender Equality & Women’s Empowerment, with a secondary code of BPAGABAG, Child Protection & Child Rights. Its NAICS code is 813311 and its SIC code is 8300.