Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid: How Your Vote Can Help Victim-Survivors of Domestic Abuse

The My Favourite Voucher Codes charity poll has four fantastic charities nominated this October, one of which is the Bromley & Croydon Women's Aid. They are one of our worthy causes who are competing to win 20% of our profits this month, but they need your votes to get the donation! Find out below how your vote for BCWA can help victims of domestic violence to escape abuse and find somewhere safe to go. 

Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid (BCWA) is a local charity supporting those experiencing domestic abuse through specialist support services, community outreach and safe temporary housing. With nearly 1 in 3 women in the UK affected by domestic abuse, Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid’s vision is to support and empower women to create change in their lives so that they and their children can live free from domestic abuse.

Who are Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid? 

Established in 1975, Bromley Women’s Aid has been working to end domestic abuse for over 40 years. In April 2016 the charity renamed to Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid after extending its services to include the London Borough of Croydon. BCWA’s staff, volunteers and trustees are diverse, representing a range of different cultures, religions, ages and nationalities, and many are former service users with a desire to give back after receiving support themselves from the charity. 

What is domestic abuse? 

Domestic abuse is an incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive, threatening, degrading and violent behaviour, including sexual violence. In the majority of cases these incidents are perpetrated by a partner or an ex-partner, but it can also be a family member or carer. Domestic abuse is actually very common and in the vast majority of cases it's experienced by women and is perpetrated by men. 

It’s a common myth that domestic abuse is only physical and BCWA staff members hear “He’s not abusive because he doesn’t hit me” far too often. In fact, emotional and psychological abuse can have devastating long-term impacts and a perpetrator may constantly belittle, criticise or objectify their victim. 

What Does Bromley and Croydon Women's Aid Do?

Offering safe and homely accommodation - BCWA runs 9 refuges with a total of 54 spaces for women and up to 66 children who are fleeing domestic abuse. Each refuge has a Refuge Officer who provides practical and emotional support, such helping to open a bank account or accompanying a woman to court, as well as a Resettlement Officer who assists with the transition of moving out of refuge. 

Outreach services – Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid Outreach Team support men and women in the community who are victims of domestic abuse, as well as providing information and advice to friends and family members who may be concerned for their loved ones. BCWA operate a weekly ‘One Stop Shop’ consisting of drop-in sessions with trained domestic abuse specialists and external agencies, such as Housing Officers or Solicitors, who can offer free advice. 

The charity also works to raise awareness of the signs of domestic abuse through training and awareness sessions within schools, local community groups and corporates to help individuals spot the signs of abuse and highlight that the issue is everybody’s business. 

Specialist support – Bromley & Women’s Aid take a person-centred approach and recognise that many victim-survivors of domestic abuse face additional barriers when seeking support or trying to leave a perpetrator. Therefore, BCWA provide specialist support for victim-survivors with no recourse to public funds, are from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities and those over the age of 50. Additionally, BCWA work in partnership with the Japanese Embassy in London to provide an outreach service in Japanese to Japanese survivors of domestic abuse throughout England who need help and support around domestic abuse, family law, housing etc.

Furthermore, with 1 in 4 victims of domestic abuse attempting suicide, Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid is very proud to have recently implemented an in-house counselling project to ensure that victim-survivors of domestic abuse who experience mental health issues have appropriate access to expert therapists. 

Children & Young People Services – BCWA’s Specialist Child Support workers help children in refuge to alleviate the traumatic effects of domestic abuse through therapeutic work, play sessions and one-to-one support. With this support, children can begin to cope with and make sense of what has happened in their families and adapt to their changing circumstances and re-location.

Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid also offer a Healthy Relationships programme to all schools in the local area free of charge where children can learn about healthy relationships through play without the mention of abuse or violence. Additionally, BCWA runs sessions called ‘Helping Hands’ in Primary Schools to children who have disclosed domestic abuse in their homes or have been identified by their teachers as at risk.   

Moreover, Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid’s Young People’s Outreach Officers support 11 to 24 year olds who have experienced relationship abuse. Their one-to-one sessions and 6 week peer support programme aims to increase young women’s self-esteem, inform group members about consent and healthy relationships, and provide a safe place for peer support. 

How Can I Contact Bromley and Croydon Women's Aid?

You can find out more information about Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid and read more about domestic abuse at www.bcwa.org.uk. If you’d like to seek advice about domestic abuse or speak to a member of the team, please call BCWA’s support line 020 8313 9303 or email info@bcwa.org.uk. 

To get help outside of office hours, ring the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247 or call the police on 999 if you are in imminent danger. 

How Can I Support Bromley and Croydon Women's Aid?

The easiest way to support Bromley and Croydon Women’s Aid is to vote for this worthwhile charity to receive 20% of My Favourite Voucher Codes profits for a month! Your vote can save lives and empower women to take back their freedom, so once you’ve voted please spread the word amongst your network and encourage them to vote for BCWA too. 

How will the funds make a difference? 

Every day, women escaping life threatening situations seek safety in our refuges. Many arrive with little more than the clothes they are wearing. Just £30 could provide toiletries, food and clothing to help a woman and her child through their first night. 

• It costs around £70 to run two specialist support group sessions which tackle the social isolation of BAME victim-survivors of domestic abuse. 
• £150 will support the running of BCWA’s Healthy Relationships Programme in primary schools to teach vulnerable children how to express their emotions, keep themselves safe and have healthy relationships.
• £500 could help to train an Independent Domestic and Sexual Violence Advocate who work to provide immediate safety for victims of domestic abuse in life-threatening situations. 

You can also support Bromley & Croydon Women’s Aid by making a donation, creating your own JustGiving fundraising page in aid of BCWA or by donating an in-kind item from their Amazon Wishlist. 

So, if BCWA are the charity you want to support this October, then don't forget to visit our homepage to cast your free vote in the poll. Although you don't need to use any of our money saving vouchers to vote, by using our vouchers you are contributing to the amount the winning charity will recieve. So cast your vote, let your friends know about the poll and save money with some free voucher codes whilst raising money for a good cause!