As we approach the end of 2015, the curtain is slowly coming down on our 41st year of providing specialist domestic abuse services to adults, children and young people in Norfolk. As we all head off for the Christmas break, we just wanted to take this opportunity to reflect on the many highlights we have enjoyed during the past year and look ahead to what the coming twelve months have in store for Leeway.
This year saw Leeway awarded the Independent Domestic Violence Advocacy (IDVA) Service and the launch of our social enterprise GP training, which has been incredibly successful. We are extremely proud of the work we have achieved over the past four decades but, like many organisations operating in the voluntary sector, our biggest challenge continues to be sourcing the funds required to allow us to continue the work we do in local communities. However, the many hours of hard work that go into raising funds is offset by the number of people we are able to support every year and the excellent feedback we receive from those who use our services.
Those of you who regularly follow our blog will know that we are always looking for new and creative fundraising ideas. In the past we have hosted a number of events, including fire walking, glass walking and abseiling. We have followed those up this year with ghost walks and a psychic evening – with golf days and sky diving events to come in the New Year!
Another source of funding we receive is through the generosity of individuals and businesses. One of the stand out moments of this year was attending Mills and Reeve’s ‘Old School Sports Day’ – who wouldn’t have fun taking part in egg and spoon relays, sack races, tug of war and welly wangling! It was a fantastic evening and helped to raise £2,000 to support our work.
Looking ahead to next year, we are pleased to be able to announce an expansion of our refuge provision – expanding into West Norfolk. In addition to that, we will also be offering a brand new, Norfolk wide, service which will assist parents who are experiencing abuse from their children. We look forward to bringing you more information on both these services early in 2016.
So as the year draws to a close we can’t thank all of our staff, volunteers and avid supporters enough for their tireless work – without you all we would not be able to continue providing these vital services to those who need them most. We would therefore like to say a massive thank you and wish you all a very Merry Christmas!
Office Opening Times:
Advice and Support Helpline (0300 561 0077)
You can also contact our helpline outside of these hours for 24/7 for emergency refuge bed space enquiries and advice. Alternatively, you can also get support by contacting National Women’s Aid on 0808 2000 247.
