Cheshire domestic abuse survivors build virtual peer support network with help of My CWA
NEWS RELEASE:
Cheshire charity, My CWA (formerly Cheshire Without Abuse) is helping domestic abuse survivors in Cheshire to stay connected by moving its peer support network online.
The charity – which helps adults and children affected by domestic abuse through a range of services, including temporary crisis accommodation, counselling, recovery programmes and practical support – suspended all its face-to-face group support when social distancing guidelines were announced in March.
One of those support services – a vital lifeline to domestic abuse survivors for more than a decade – is a network of peer support groups across Crewe, Macclesfield and Warrington called coffee & chat. Thanks to a digital overhaul of the charity’s services, coffee & chat has been given a virtual facelift – via Facebook.
My CWA chief executive, Saskia Lightburn-Ritchie, explains: “Coffee & chat was a safe space where members of our My CWA family could get together every week and just be themselves. No judgement. No putting on a brave face. Just open and honest conversation with other people who get it.
“The women attending these groups need their peers now more than ever, so when we suspended our face-to-face groups, we couldn’t just ignore that this huge part of their lives had gone,” Saskia continues.
“We’ve moved coffee & chat online to bring the members of our My CWA family together in one safe and supportive environment. We know it’s not quite the same as our face-to-face groups. But it’s the best we can do for now. We really hope our service users – whether or not they’ve attended coffee and chat before – find it helpful to have somewhere safe to connect with each other,” Saskia adds.
To join the new, closed Facebook group, search My CWA Coffee and Chat in Facebook. You’ll need to read and accept the group rules as well as answer some questions about why you want to join.
This is a women-only support group, but My CWA is currently in consultation with its service users about creating a support group for male survivors of domestic abuse. If you’d like to take part in the consultation process, contact My CWA – info@mycwa.org.uk
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