All Thanks to our Christmas Donors

Christmas 2004 was a particularly phenomenal time, having received an abundance of toys, gifts, festive food and chocolate for our resident mums and children. As ever a busy time for all staff associated with ensuring Christmas was as normal as possible for those whom we support through our services, this included not only our residents but those women and children in the community who are experiencing the affects of Domestic Violence. In total we were able to provide gifts to 143 children. Without you our donors we would not have been able to support so many in Wolverhampton and once again we are hugely indebted to you for your kindness and generosity, therefore we offer once a gain an enormous thank you to you all.
Some of the children’s comments:
“ I have never celebrated Christmas and the presents I could never have dreamed”
“ I have never had a good Xmas with a big family”
“ My Dinner was Lovely, thank you”

The Christmas delivery of gifts was co-ordinated by the Children’s Services Team who worked flat out sorting, displaying and helping the mums choose appropriate gifts for their children. The children’s workers made a huge contribution in the smooth operation of the Christmas Appeal bringing the true meaning of Christmas to those less fortunate.

Christmas would not be the same without ‘Santa’ and of course at The Haven our children had a special visit at their Christmas Party, staff and mums were all as excited as the children at his arrival in his huge sleigh - again a huge thank you to ‘Wednesfield Rotary Club’ for providing a fantastic visit to our children.
Children’s Quote
“ Thank you very much for a great party and meeting Santa”

A visit to the Christmas Pantomime at the Grand Theatre was another fantastic experience for our children, again we could not have provided this treat without the assistance of our Donors - ‘Kids Out’ came up trumps providing funding for the cost of tickets and generous staff propped the expense by contributing cash in lieu of Christmas Cards to our in house ‘Pantomime Fund’. This astounded our expectations allowing all our women and children access ‘Cinderella’ which was a memorable occasion for all.

Children’s Quotes
“ I never saw such a lovely performance and I liked the way the ugly sisters acted and showed off”
“ We were high up in the Theatre and the show was really really funny”
“ Cinderella was smashing and what a brilliant Christmas it was at The Haven!

Letter from Assistant Chief Executive  

Welcome to The Havens’ Spring newsletter. In this edition you can read about the fun of the festive season at our refuges, our children’s Valentines Day Greetings, plans for International Women’s Week and Easter Egg Appeal.

This time of year is hectic for us, we’re busy finalising our next 3-year Business Plan which all our staff have been involved in developing, and we are also planning our budgets for the next financial year. We’re awaiting the outcome of 2 funding applications one of which is to support our direct work with children and the other is to sustain our Counselling Project. I’m sure that you are more than aware of the value of Counselling in the process of recovery for women and children left traumatised by the impact of violence and abuse towards them. It is essential therefore that this project is sustained.

 

At last I have some news about ‘Pearl House’ our new refuge for women suffering with mental ill health as a result of Domestic Violence. I am delighted to inform you that building work will commence on site mid-March and the project should be completed and ready to take referrals by the end of 2005. It’s been a very long wait and so much planning has gone into the project. Many thanks to colleagues at Focus Housing our partners in ‘Pearl House’s’ development for their on-going support. In the next few months, we’ll be looking at staff establishment, revenue costs and establishing policies and procedures. Thanks to our Mental Health Working Group for their valuable contributions to this process.

I am also delighted to tell you that The Haven has been re-accredited with Investors in People. In any organisation staff are the most valuable asset and this is particularly so at The Haven. Thanks to all the staff team, your commitment to the process has ensured that we secured this award.

We endeavour to make our services available to all women and children living in Wolverhampton affected by violence, abuse and homelessness but we know that this is not always the case. Over the years we have identified a slow take up of our services by women from the Black and African-Caribbean communities and we are committed to improving access to The Haven for these women. We will be undertaking research to establish the current position, identify why these groups do not access our services and to look for remedies and solutions. We have received funding from the Commission for Racial Equality to carry out this research which should be complete by late autumn.

Finally, The Haven has been selected as the nominated charity for this year’s Inspirational Women’s Annual Awards to be held in March. We are grateful for the nomination and we look forward to the event which promises to be a very enjoyable evening.

Jasvinder Devgon
Assistant Chief Executive


Page 1
All thanks to our Christmas Donors
Welcome to The Haven's Spring Newletter

Page 2
The Haven Supporting the Development of Women's Groups Across Wolverhampton
Haven ICT (Information and Communication Technology) News
On Saving Relationships

Page 3
International Women's Week 7-11 March 2005
A The Haven Wolverhampton - Valentine's Greetings

Also
The Haven Wolverhampton External Training
The Haven Wolverhampton Donation Form
CRARG Advocacy Training


From October to December 2004 The Haven Wolverhampton received referrals from 316 women and 265 children. We were able to accommodate 133 women and children.


The Haven Wolverhampton aims to provide quality and sensitive services to women and any dependent children who are homeless through reasons such as Domestic Violence and in need of safety, shelter, stability and support within an environment of equality, dignity and respect.


To provide practical and emotional support to women and any dependent children who access The Haven Wolverhampton by:

• Providing information on options that are available to the client.
• Providing information on potential implications of these options.
• Providing practical and emotional support to the client in whatever choice(s) they make.
and
• Providing and / or facilitating the access to services and support to assist them in achieving their goals.

In all dealings with clients we work towards enabling the client to make informed choices and to maintain independence.


Please continue to support The ClothesLine Charity Shop ground fllor Business Office, 26 Chapel Ash, Wolverhampton (off road parking available at back entrance). Open Monday - Friday, 10:00am to 4:00pm.Telephone 01902 572134.

All good Ladies and Children's Clothing required. Funding generated from this project is to help support women and children experiencing Mental ill Health as a result of Domestic Violnce.

Desperately seeking - Easter Eggs for our resident children. If you can help please call Ros on 01902 572147.


Business Administration Office:
26, Chapel Ash,
Wolverhampton.

For referrals and 24 hour emergency assistance only, please call 01902 713001.

Our business office number is 01902 572140, fax: 01902 572144.


You can also email us at info@havenrefuge.org.uk


Visit our website at www.havenrefuge.org.uk for details of how you can make a difference.

Can you offer a few hours a week to volunteer on our many projects eg. The Clothedline, hostel work, resettlement, fundraising, if that's you, please call on 01902 572140.