Solace Women's Aid

Project Title:Ascent Advice and Counselling
Total London Councils Grant:£5,700,952
Funding period:01 April 2017 to 31 March 2021
Priority:Tackling Sexual and Domestic Violence
Service area:2.2 Advice, counselling and support to access services (for medium risk post-IDVA and target groups not accessing generalist provision)

Description

The project provides support for women (age 16+) affected by DV/SV and prevents its escalation through individually tailored advice, support and therapeutic services to enable women to cope, recover and move to independence.  The Project provides four key service areas with a holistic delivery model providing initial response to all forms of Violence against Women and Girls (VAWG) as well as after-care from IDVA services:

-       Advice, including legal support, through a hub and spoke model and inclusive of targeted support for BME women; those with NRPF; young women (including gang affected age 14+); sexually exploited women (including those with problematic substance use issues) and women with complex housing needs to enable them to access safe accommodation.

-       One to one BACP accredited counselling delivered within each borough as well as counselling in over 20 languages provided by BME led by and for organisations.  

-       A bespoke in-borough group work programme, as well as specialist BME focused group work across the partner organisations to aid recovery, reduce isolation and increase understanding of abuse.

-       No Recourse fund to assist women with no recourse to public funds with essential living costs and accommodation.

-       Training including legal training to professionals and accredited VAWG training to volunteers and therapeutic training to clinicians.

- The project will deliver a range of outcomes including increased safety, access to safe housing, legal support, reduced risk, improved mental/physical health and well-being, increased confidence/self-esteem and increased knowledge for service providers around DV/SV.

Referral route

Gill Herd, Senior Manager - Partnerships

Email: g.herd@solacewomensaid.org ascenta&c@solacewomensaid.org or call 0203 198 4661

Solace Women's Aid, Unit 5-7 Blenheim Court, 62 Brewery Road, N7 9NY

www.solacewomensaid.org

Referral routes:

East London (Solace Women’s Aid): 0808 802 5565; advice@solacewomensaid.org

West London (Women and Girls Network): 0808 801 0660; advice@wgn.org.uk

London Legal Advice (Rights of Women): 0207 608 1137

Borough benefits

BoroughAnticipated service users per year
Barking and Dagenham196
Barnet188
Bexley129
Brent223
Bromley181
Camden173
City of London15
Croydon307
Ealing237
Enfield213
Greenwich224
Hackney239
Hammersmith and Fulham142
Haringey218
Harrow122
Havering169
Hillingdon196
Hounslow219
Islington188
Kensington and Chelsea101
Kingston upon Thames91
Lambeth298
Lewisham249
Merton106
Newham281
Redbridge198
Richmond upon Thames87
Southwark267
Sutton110
Tower Hamlets242
Waltham Forest214
Wandsworth191
Westminster216

Partners

  • Solace Women's Aid
  • Ashiana Network
  • Asian Women's Resource Centre
  • Chinese Information and Advice Centre
  • EACH Counselling and Support
  • Iranian and Kurdish Women's Rights Organisation
  • IMECE Women's Centre
  • Jewish Women's Aid
  • Latin American Women's Rights Service
  • The Nia Project
  • Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre
  • Rights of Women
  • Southall Black Sisters
  • Women and Girls Network