By Jess Bourne
A charity in Leicester has launched a Christmas gift campaign to help families in need.
Each year, Living Without Abuse (LWA), a charity providing support for those suffering from domestic and sexual abuse, donates gifts to its clients, including men, women and children.
LWA has received donations from organisations such as Primark, Fisher German and several individual donors.
It received about 2,000 to 3,000 individual item donations and the team were able to pack 370 gift bags. They have also been able to provide gifts to children on care protection plans.
“Christmas for people experiencing domestic abuse or recovering from domestic abuse is notoriously a really challenging time for them,” said Emily Corrigan, head of fundraising at Living Without Abuse.
“Christmas-time during periods of abuse are usually a real pressure cooker at times, so memories of Christmas for these people, these families, these kids are typically not the happiest memories.
“So, it’s enabling them [the clients] to feel like a normal family, and it’s about making the clients feel valued. Knowing that people cared about them and complete strangers were willing to do this, you cannot underestimate the value that has,” Emily added.
The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with clients being overjoyed with the support that LWA has been able to provide them with.
The charity also has an annual Strictly competition, which involves six novice dancers being paired with experienced dancers and this year they raised £4,500 in ticket sales, sponsorships, raffles and refreshments.
“It’s a great way to raise awareness but also have fun at the same time,” Emily said. “They are extremely competitive, and the standard is unbelievably high.”
However, this year, the charity has seen a decrease in cash and item donations due to the cost-of-living crisis. Because of this, the team have shifted their attention to focus on value for money and experience.
Living Without Abuse supports victims of domestic and/or sexual violence, regardless of gender, age, religion and ethnicity.
If you are looking for support or wanting advice on behalf of family, a friend or a colleague etc, you can phone the freephone line 0808 80 200 28. This is where you will be signposted where to get the best support and if you want to speak specifically to LWA, this needs to be mentioned when calling.
LWA does also have a website that includes a range of resources available.
If you would like to get involved with the gift campaign or donate, you can contact Emily at emily@lwa.org.uk.
