Published: Friday, 8th July 2016
Cannock Chase Council has contributed £10,000 to support the ongoing development of women’s refuge, ForWard House.
ForWard House is a new purpose built refuge providing quality accommodation for women and children fleeing domestic violence, which opened its doors in February this year.
The project was developed over 10 years in partnership with local councils and housing trust, following a consultation with women and children who had lived in the previous Staffordshire Women’s Aid refuge.
The refuge includes 12 self contained flats with communal facilities including a playroom, teenage room and a larger room for communal activities.
This purpose built accommodation enables Staffordshire Women’s Aid to support larger families, families with older children and also those with complex disability needs.
The communal areas offer therapeutic and educational activities for women, which not only enables recovery but also helps to build independence and skills.
Since opening in February ForWard House has accommodated five families from the Cannock Chase District.
Councillor Carl Bennett, Portfolio Leader for Crime and Partnerships said “We are delighted to be able to support the ongoing development of ForWard House. It is an essential facility which provides much needed accommodation and rehabilitation for vulnerable women and children.”
Dickie James, Chief Executive of Staffordshire Women’s Aid said "ForWard House is a beautiful, therapeutic and safe building which enables us to support the most vulnerable families who have been made homeless by domestic abuse. It enables us to help these families recover from the traumas they have experienced, and to move forward into new homes where they can become independent, more confident and free from abuse. The contribution from Cannock Chase Council is a demonstration of the Council's commitment to supporting our work with victims of domestic abuse, and of our strong partnership. It will help us to run ForWard House as a high quality provision for very vulnerable families."
This allocation has been funded by the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Locality Deal Fund and Chase Community Partnership.
Mathew Ellis, Staffordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, said: “Domestic abuse has a devastating impact on victims and can affect the whole of their lives. This development will provide accommodation and support for victims of domestic abuse when they need it most.”