2024/2025 year in review
This year we proudly upheld our Women’s Aid Quality Standard Accreditation, demonstrating excellence in safety, safeguarding and survivor-led care. We also launched ARTiculating HerStory helping women express their journeys through collage art.
Welcome
Welcome to our 2024/2025 annual review. Every woman and child who turns to The Haven reminds us why our mission matters. This year, we have seen incredible resilience through women rebuilding after trauma, children rediscovering joy and survivors finding strength in one another. We are deeply grateful to every supporter, partner, volunteer and member of staff who stands with us in this work. Together, we are changing lives.
– Lynne Moran, Chair of the Board of Trustee
Highlights
Recognising Excellence - Women’s Aid Federation of England (WAFE) - Quality Standard Accreditation
This year, through our Women’s Aid Quality Assurance Accreditation, we were proud to uphold nationally recognised standards of safety, safeguarding, trauma-informed practice and high-quality service delivery for survivors of domestic abuse. At the award ceremony, we were particularly commended for the “employment of a dedicated immigration specialist who leads on NRPF work and for the creation of a very specialist role ‘Architect of Stories’ to ensure that survivors have a voice at strategic level within the organisation.”
A Smarter, More Coordinated Approach to Service Delivery
Our investment in Oasis, a bespoke case management system with over 80 customisations, has enabled us to strengthen how we track outcomes, share information responsibly and ensure services remain joined-up and survivor-led. These enhancements mean that every interaction, risk assessment and support plan is captured consistently and securely, giving our teams real-time insight into each survivor’s journey. The system has also helped us streamline processes across departments, improve multi-agency communication and build a clearer picture of our impact.
Creativity as Healing - ARTiculating HerStory
In partnership with Wolverhampton Art Gallery and funded by the Commonwealth Games Legacy Fund, we launched a powerful creative programme that enabled women to tell their stories through collage art. This bespoke initiative provided a safe, supportive space where survivors could explore vulnerability, resilience and hope through visual forms, helping to bridge the gap when words alone can’t express the complexity of trauma and healing. The resulting artworks were not only deeply personal expressions of journey and aspiration but were also publicly displayed in the Gallery’s Gathering Space; a testament to courage, community and the creative voice of survivors. Through this exhibition, the women’s pieces spoke not just to their own experiences but invited viewers to witness, listen and reflect, challenging stigma, fostering empathy and affirming that art is a language of healing.
Women’s Voices
“I always had support when I needed it.”
Our Services & Support
Last year, The Haven walked alongside hundreds of women, children and young people across our refuge and community services, offering safety, advocacy and space to rebuild. Our helpline and digital support channels remained a constant lifeline, ensuring that anyone reaching out was met with compassion, belief and practical help when they needed it. No matter how someone comes to us, or where they are on their journey, we stand with them for as long as needed, providing support that is holistic, trauma-informed and centred on their voice.
Safe Accommodation & Community Support
Across both our safe accommodation and community services, our teams walked alongside women, children and young people as they worked to stay safe, rebuild stability and regain independence, whether they were living alone, living with an abuser or beginning a new chapter in refuge.
Throughout the year, we created countless opportunities for families to experience joy, learn, and feel a sense of connection. We hosted breakfast clubs that encouraged healthy habits, alongside creative and therapeutic sessions such as arts and crafts and ‘Sip and Paint’. Children enjoyed outdoor adventures, cultural celebrations and chances to try new foods, be inventive, learn history and simply rediscover the freedom of play. Women built friendships through shared experiences, gained new skills and took part in supportive activities that nurtured wellbeing, recovery and resilience.
Thanks to generous partners and donors, families also enjoyed days out, sports activities, pizza nights and festive celebrations, as well as simple moments of delight: a child proudly gifting a hand-decorated cookie or a woman offering homemade cupcakes as she moved into her new home. These small but meaningful encounters reminded us that refuge is not just a place to stay, but a community where healing grows through laughter, creativity, shared meals and new memories. Together, these moments built confidence, restored hope and helped families imagine a brighter future beyond abuse.
Recovery Services
We provided a range of practical and therapeutic tools that helped women rebuild their lives with stability, confidence and hope:
- Counselling – Our therapeutic service continued to offer a safe, confidential space for healing. We reduced waiting times significantly and supported more women to process trauma, build resilience and regain emotional strength.
- Life Skills – Through workshops on budgeting, cooking and tenancy readiness, women developed practical skills to support independent living and navigate the everyday realities of rebuilding life after abuse.
- Women’s Empowerment Programmes – These sessions promoted wellbeing and confidence, helping women reconnect with their sense of identity, strengthen self-belief and move forward with renewed purpose.
- Home Efficiency Service – We provided tailored support to help women manage rising household costs, offering energy-saving guidance, advice and essential vouchers during a challenging cost-of-living period.
- Substance Use Support – In partnership with local services, we offered specialist guidance for women facing additional barriers related to substance use, ensuring they received sensitive, trauma-informed support.
- Specialist Support – Our teams provided dedicated advocacy for women with complex needs, including those navigating legal issues, housing challenges and multiple forms of trauma, ensuring they had the right support at the right time.
Support for Women with No Recourse to Public Funds
We ensured women without access to benefits could still access food, sanctuary, and critical support including:
- Immigration fees
- School-related costs
- Mobile data and digital access
This included supporting a survivor to anonymously share her story with BBC Midlands Today – raising awareness and hope for others. Click here for more.
Early Intervention and Prevention
Our MENgage and EmpowHER school programmes promoted gender equality and healthy relationships, engaging 819 students.
Staff training and collaboration with safeguarding and accountability networks strengthened our skilled, trauma-informed workforce.
Children & Young People
From creative expression to emotional regulation, we helped children rebuild trust and safety.
A highlight was a joyful trip to Circus Starr’s ‘The Circus with a Purpose’, a moment of carefree fun many had not felt in years.
A Day of Wonder at Circus Starr
The day began with a simple joy: climbing aboard a bright double-decker bus driven by Dicky Dodd. For some, this was a first-ever experience. Excitement filled the journey to Circus Starr, where families were welcomed with a group photo before settling into their seats. The show itself was a whirlwind of colour, talent and thrill; children gasped in disbelief at the daring balancing acts, giggled at the characters, and eagerly soaked in every moment. During the interval, face painting and small souvenirs added to the magic, ensuring that the sense of wonder never faded.
Circus Starr went above and beyond to make the experience inclusive and accessible, providing a BSL interpreter and thoughtful adjustments for our SEN children. The day ended with a joyful sing-along, glow sticks waving in the air as children danced and interacted with the performers. For the women and children who attended, it was more than a show. It was a rare moment of shared laughter, community and escape, creating memories that will stay with them long after the lights went down.
“Minions!”
“I thought he’d fall over!”
In Their Own Words
Impact at a Glance
women, children & young people referred
helpline calls answered every month
women newly welcomed into safe accommodation
young people educated on healthy relationships
total amount of small grants issued
children newly welcomed into safe accommodation
%
reduction in counselling waiting list, despite rising referrals
small grants issued
women supported with energy advice and vouchers
worth of brand new gifts donated in kindness
Fundraising Highlights
We strengthened relationships across the West Midlands and delivered successful events including:
Golf Day – raising £6,500 for life-changing support.
Charity Ball – our masquerade ball brought together elegance and empathy in equal measure.
Christmas Kindness – joyful moments and gifts for every family.
Regular Giving and Sponsorships – helping us plan ahead and meet growing demand.
We also refreshed refuge spaces, funded life-changing support, and delivered activities that helped women and children rediscover hope.
Campaigning & Community Advocacy
Throughout the year, we worked to build visibility, spark conversations and amplify the voices of women and children across Wolverhampton and the wider region. Through powerful storytelling, citywide partnerships and public engagement, our campaigning helped bring domestic abuse out of the shadows and into spaces where awareness can lead to real change. Below are some of the key stories and highlights from this year’s advocacy work.
Highlights from Media Coverage
BBC News – Domestic abuse charity gets £60k to help children
BBC coverage highlighted The Haven Wolverhampton receiving a significant grant to fund therapeutic support for children affected by domestic abuse. Read more.
BBC News – Abuse survivor anxious over early jail releases
Regional BBC reporting shared survivors’ concerns about early release of abusers, illustrating wider societal impacts of domestic abuse that organisations like The Haven are campaigning around. Read more.
Express & Star – Freemasons fund vital children’s support role
Local press covered a £60,000 grant from Staffordshire Freemasons to fund a therapeutic worker for children supported by The Haven, strengthening trauma recovery services. Read more.
Express & Star – Appeal launched to help children recovering from trauma
Coverage of a community appeal supported by The Haven emphasised the importance of play and therapeutic spaces for children recovering from domestic abuse. Read more.
Express & Star – City prepares to ‘Orange Wolverhampton’
Regional press reported on the citywide Orange awareness campaign, linking The Haven into 16 Days of Activism efforts alongside partners to raise visibility of gender-based violence. Read more.
Orange Wolves
As part of the global 16 Days of Activism campaign, Orange Wolves 2024 once again brought the city of Wolverhampton together to stand united against gender-based violence.
This year, we shared the moving story of a young girl’s journey through our services at the city’s official flag-raising event. It was a reminder that children are not just witnesses to abuse but victims in their own right, and that behind the statistic are children, mothers and whole families finding their way back to safety and hope.
We also delivered Lunch & Learn sessions to partners across the city, raising awareness about domestic abuse and the power of language, how the words we use can either reinforce stigma or inspire understanding and change.
The Haven team proudly joined the community Walk Through Wolverhampton, walking side by side with survivors, supporters, and partner organisations to show that together, we can turn awareness into action.
Empurple Week
Each year, for Empurple Week we unite our partners and supporters in Wolverhampton in a vibrant display of solidarity for women and children affected by domestic abuse. This year, businesses like TPSquared, schools, community groups like AW Kickboxing, and many individuals joined forces to raise awareness and vital funds, turning logos and lives purple to show that our city stands against violence. Radio partner WCRFM joined the movement by “empurpling” their logo and website for the week, helping our message reach thousands across the region. At a very special coffee morning, empurpled pledges reflected a shared belief that every woman and child deserves safety, dignity, and the chance to rebuild.
Looking Ahead
Our focus for the year ahead from March 2025:
Strengthening governance to ensure long-term sustainability
Enhancing systems and digital transformation to improve trauma-informed support
Embedding our new Chief Executive’s vision, centred on survivor voice and innovation.
Download Previous Reports
2023 – 2024
Discover the Impact of Our 50th Anniversary Year
This report captures a landmark year of reflection, celebration, and transformation. Marking five decades of supporting women and children, it highlights the stories, milestones, and collective efforts that shaped our Jubilee Year and strengthened our mission.
From moments of joy and community connection to courageous journeys of recovery, this report offers a snapshot of the lives touched and the progress made as we honoured our past and looked ahead to the future.
2022 – 2023
A Celebration of Legacy
This report reflects a year of rebuilding, innovation and support for women and children navigating domestic abuse. It highlights the strength of survivors, the dedication of our teams, and the partnerships that helped us expand our services. From safe accommodation and community support to therapeutic interventions, specialist advocacy, and early-years provision.
Amid rising need and economic challenges, this year showcases how flexible support, collaborative working, and survivor-centred programmes helped families regain stability, confidence, and hope. It is a powerful snapshot of the progress made as we moved towards our 50th anniversary.
2021 – 2022
Rebuilding and Rising Beyond COVID
This report captures a year of transition and determination as we moved from the immediate impact of COVID-19 into a period of rebuilding and strengthening our services. It highlights how we adapted to rising need, expanded safe accommodation, and embraced digital innovation to ensure women and children could continue accessing life-changing support.
From enhanced counselling programmes to new digital tools, community partnerships, and award-winning approaches to safety and recovery, this year reflects the resilience of survivors and the commitment of our teams as we navigated a complex post-pandemic landscape together.