Important Appeal

The Haven Wolverhampton is appealing for funds to support its specialist counselling service which is set to face closure at the end of the month.

The Haven Wolverhampton has been supporting women and children who are vulnerable to violence and abuse since 1973. The Haven’s Counselling service has traditionally been funded through grant making bodies with its most recent 3 year project ‘Beyond Surviving’ being funded through the Big Lottery Fund. Due to a number of external factors including the current state of economic climate, government cuts and increased competition for funding in the voluntary sector The Haven has been unable to acquire funds to continue this service.

All at The Haven are incredibly saddened at the closure of this vital service. Counselling services have proven to have a great impact on the recovery of victims of domestic violence as they offer women the chance to express their emotions and deal with their experiences in a way which allows them to recover, improve their wellbeing and work to re-build their lives after abuse. However, in spite of these benefits and the positive effects of Counselling, provision remains inadequately and disappointingly underfunded. The difficulty in securing further funding for The Haven Wolverhampton Counselling service is a reflection of the financial difficulties currently being experienced by women’s services across the UK.

A current Haven client spoke of how Counselling has helped her in her recovery; “Counselling has helped me to survive. It’s helped me be alive. It’s helped me with my confidence. It’s helped me to find me, where I am and where I am going.”

The Haven Wolverhampton is actively seeking funding to be able to continue to offer some form of Counselling support to women and children affected by Domestic Violence in Wolverhampton. The Haven recently launched the ‘Cycle to end the Cycle’ campaign which will see The Haven’s Chief Executive, Kath Rees, and 6 other brave women take on the challenge of cycling 270 miles from London to Paris in order to raise money for the service.

We would like to encourage as many people as possible to get behind this campaign. You can support this campaign by making a financial donation to help us reach our target and those in need of our services. Donations to the counselling appeal can be made online at www.justgiving.com/thehavenwolverhampton/donate

Donations can also be made via text. Text TALK 07 and the amount you wish to donate (£1, £2, £3, £4, £5 or £10) to the number 70070. The Haven receives 100% of all donations – there are no network charges. We are also able to accept cheques, made payable to The Haven Wolverhampton, which should be sent via post to ‘The Haven Wolverhampton Counselling Appeal, 1st Floor Herian House, Fold Street, Wolverhampton, WV1 4LP.

For more information please contact The Haven Wolverhampton on 01902 572140 or email info@havenrefuge.org.uk