1 in 4 women in the UK experience Domestic Abuse during their lifetime. It could be your mum, your sister, a friend or your daughter. This needs to change. Relate Dorset and South Wiltshire are committed to working towards making this happen. Are you?
We believe the best way we can help do this is to alter the behaviour of the men committing the abuse, whilst offering support to their partners to ensure their safety, so we are asking for your financial support to make this possible.
Our 28 week Choose 2 Change programme works with men in Dorset, South Wiltshire, South Somerset and the wider surrounding areas who recognise the harm that they are causing and want to change and have healthier, happier relationships moving forward. For many, this is often breaking a cycle of abuse that they first experienced themselves as children. By working with the men to help them learn new patterns of behaving, we are protecting their partners from future abuse and their children from the trauma caused by witnessing abuse. The safety and wellbeing of partners and children is paramount so we have a team of support workers on hand to work with them directly throughout the time the abuser is on the programme.
How will the funding be used?
The money raised will part fund a year’s delivery of Choose 2 Change. Because it is a continuous programme, men can join at any time, meaning we don’t have to wait to get enough delegates before we can start. This funding will allow up to 16 men to turn their lives around, protecting their partners and children, past, present and future. We will ask the men to contribute towards the cost of the programme where possible as this helps build commitment to the course, but we will not exclude those unable to contribute.
If we do not meet the full target?
Any money raised will be used to help fund those on low income in our area to attend the Choose 2 Change programme.
About Us
Relate Dorset and South Wiltshire provide services to rural Dorset, South Wiltshire and South Somerset. Whilst a Federated member of the national Relate charity, we are very much a separately owned, local charity who have been running since 1998. We are so much more than just “marriage guidance”. Our vision is for everyone to have thriving relationships at every stage of their lives. We offer a range of programmes aimed at reducing Domestic Abuse. As well as Choose 2 Change, we offer Time 2 Change for women who are abusive and an awareness and prevention programme for refugees. We also offer a range of counselling services for children and young people and adults. For children and young people, we are there to help them with any issue, from problems with friends, anxiety, exam pressure to problems with family break ups or becoming a blended family. For adults, as well as offering relationship counselling, we also offer individual counselling to help with other issues such as anxiety, low self-esteem or bereavement. In addition to this we are a NACCC accredited Supervised Child Contact Centre, offering a safe, monitored environment for children to meet with non-resident parents, who might otherwise be at risk of harm for a variety of reasons. We work with both Court ordered contact cases and private cases.
More About our Choose 2 Change Programme
We know it isn’t easy to change behaviours, so this is not a short programme. Before being accepted onto the course, the men undergo a rigorous assessment to establish their understanding of their current behaviour, their motivation for attending the course and the possible risks to their partners or family from attending.
Over 7 months, the men will then attend weekly workshops covering a wide range of subjects such as jealousy, violence, power and control, emotional abuse and denial, minimisation and accountability. They are encouraged to reflect on their behaviour and it’s impact whilst being given tools and techniques to break these patterns and form healthier behavioural habits moving forward. At the same time, our Partner Support Workers will be in close contact with their partners letting them know what is being covered, identifying any potential increases in risk and helping ensure their safety both now and after the course. At the end of the programme each man attends an individual “Keeping At It” session to help them carry on the progress and keep up the good habits that they have learnt as we know this is not the end of their journey.
What do the men who have already been through the programme say?
Please help us to continue this important programme by donating to our fund. Or if you feel you could benefit from our Choose 2 Change or Time 2 Change programmes, please get in touch [email protected]
Thank you!