“ORANGE the world” is the message from the United Nations that Darlington women have taken to heart.

Club members of Soroptimist International of Darlington and District have been wearing the colour orange in locations all over the world to raise awareness of violence against women.

The upcoming International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on November 25 hopes to reduce statistics like 35 per cent of women experiencing physical or sexual violence in their lifetime.

And the Darlington Soroptimist’s have been snapped in orange on the doorstep of Number 10 Downing Street, the Orange Civic Theatre in Melbourne and at the Isle of Wight festival.

The challenge to wear or hold something orange in “interesting locations” aims to take the message of preventing violence on females to as many places as possible.

The UN believe around 133 million women and girls have suffered a form of female genital mutilation in 29 African and Middle Eastern countries where the practice is common.

And that more than 700 million women alive today were married as children - 250 million of those were married before the age of 15 meaning it's unlikely they completed education.

The Darlington and District Soroptimists have their annual pink meeting in aid of breast cancer care on November 24 from 7.30pm at Dalkeith House on Tees Grange Way.