News

Chelsea supporters raise over 200K for national domestic abuse charity Refuge, club matches donations. Chelsea women donate WSL Championship funds also. Chelsea supporters, matched by their club, have secured more than half a million pounds for Refuge, the UK’s largest single provider of specialist domestic abuse services. At the start of April, Chelsea Football Club joined forces with Refuge to raise awareness and valuable funds to support women and children experiencing domestic abuse during the current Covid-19 crisis. As reports from around the world show that the coronavirus pandemic has led to an increase in domestic abuse incidents during periods … Continue reading →

Responding to the announcement of a ‘major overhaul’ to the family courts, Ellie Butt, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at Refuge said: “Refuge welcomes the Government’s announcement today to overhaul the family courts to better protect victims of domestic abuse. Failings by the family courts are regularly cited to Refuge by women who have experienced domestic abuse and many of the women we support around the country have been re traumatised when accessing the family courts. Sweeping reforms are necessary – but the changes should go further. Refuge is pleased to have fed into the Government’s Family Courts Review, … Continue reading →

As the Domestic Abuse Bill continues through the Committee stage this week, Ellie Butt, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at Refuge said: “As the Committee stage of the Domestic Abuse Bill is set to conclude over the next few days, Refuge is hopeful that Government ministers and MPs on the Committee will take this opportunity to add crucial measures to the Bill, to ensure it makes a real difference to survivors and meets the Government’s own objective of transforming the response to domestic abuse. Not all issues that are of primary concern to Refuge will be discussed this week … Continue reading →

Responding to the front page of The Sun on Friday 12th June, Jane Keeper, director of operations at Refuge, said: “The front page of The Sun this morning is as irresponsible as it is disappointing. It would ordinarily be troubling for such an editorial decision to be made – but to run with this during lockdown, when demand to Refuge’s National Domestic Abuse Helpline have increased by 66% is shocking. What this has done is give national media coverage to a perpetrator of domestic abuse to attempt to justify his actions. It is never acceptable to hit a woman. The … Continue reading →

Refuge welcomes the agreement reached between the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and mobile phone providers to make access to websites which are providing support during the Covid-19 crisis data free of charge. Commenting on the announcement Refuge’s Director of communications and external relations, Lisa King said: “Since lockdown began, Refuge has seen a spike of more than 950% in visits to its www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk –  many thousands of women every day need the specialist support Refuge provides and now more than ever need to access this information digitally. We know that during periods of isolation the window in which … Continue reading →

Chelsea Women’s prize money donated to Refuge – ‘the best way to demonstrate support’ says Emma Hayes As part of their ongoing campaign with Refuge, Chelsea will be making a further contribution to supporting women and children experiencing domestic abuse during the current coronavirus pandemic. The prize money for winning the 2019/20 Barclays FA Women’s Super League is being donated to the charity. It was announced on Monday that Chelsea had secured the WSL title, based on a points-per-game basis. Emma Hayes and her squad were unbeaten throughout the season and had defeated title rivals in head-to-head games. The prize … Continue reading →

Refuge, the national charity which provides specialist support to women and children escaping domestic abuse today announced the appointment of a new Chair. Hetti Barkworth-Nanton succeeds Maggie Rae whose term as chair of the governing board ends in June. Maggie Rae said she was delighted with the appointment: “We have conducted a very thorough and exhaustive search to find the right person to take over this very challenging role. We are privileged that Hetti has agreed to succeed me, and I know she is the right person to guide Refuge through the next phase of its hugely influential work in … Continue reading →

Since the start of lockdown, Refuge, the country’s largest single provider of specialist domestic abuse services, and sole provider of the National Domestic Abuse Helpline, has tracked the demand for its Helpline and the number of visits to its National Domestic Abuse Helpline website, which have spiked significantly over the last eight weeks. The spike in demand for the Helpline shows the extent of support required during lockdown. The window for women experiencing domestic abuse to reach out for help is ordinarily very limited –  with this window narrowing further when isolating with an abusive partner. This spike in demand … Continue reading →

In response to the Government’s announcement today of a £76m fund to support the ‘most vulnerable’, Sandra Horley CBE, Chief Executive of national domestic abuse charity Refuge said: “Refuge welcomes the Government’s announcement today to pledge further funds to specialist organisations working to address domestic abuse. This funding will help support frontline services at a time when they are needed more than ever.  Refuge has seen demand for its services increase significantly since the necessary lockdown measures were announced –  Refuge’s National Domestic Abuse Helpline has seen demand rise by around 50%, indicating the sheer numbers of women who need … Continue reading →