My name is Kischa Green. I’m a Senior Independent Domestic Violence Advisor in Tower Hamlets, a mother of three, and - like too many of my colleagues - I’m facing redundancy.
As a survivor of domestic abuse myself, I know firsthand how vital these services are. I know how terrifying it is to leave, how dangerous it can be, and how much strength it takes to rebuild your life.
I’ve spent years working with survivors of domestic abuse, supporting them when they are at their most vulnerable. Now, the charity I work for - Solace Women’s Aid - is cutting our team by a third in a borough with the second-highest domestic abuse rate in London.
Solace is contracted to provide support to survivors of domestic abuse with the Tower Hamlets council. In just eight months last year, our team managed 1,339 referrals and directly supported 519 survivors.
Every day, we help women, children, and men escape violence, secure housing, and rebuild their lives. At Solace, I am often the first point of contact for survivors—mostly women—who are scared and alone. I support them with everything from emotional support to financial assistance, helping children access services, and advocating with the police and social services on their behalf.
These cuts mean fewer advisors, longer waiting times and more survivors left without help when they need it most. With women being 70% of all victim-survivors of domestic violence and abuse, these cuts could put women’s lives at risk.
We can’t let this happen.
WHY YOUR SUPPORT MATTERS
Instead of protecting our jobs and the people we support, Solace and Tower Hamlets Council are letting crucial services crumble. The value of the contract has almost doubled to £1.4m from 2024 to 2026, up from the £783,452 it received between 2021 and 2024, yet Solace claims the council withdrew expected funding.
Cutting these services will be catastrophic. Survivors will be left without the urgent, specialist support they need. Cases will pile up. Women will fall through the cracks. Lives will be put at risk.
That’s why we’re taking indefinite strike action. We didn’t want to do this. But we can’t stand by while life-saving services are slashed.
We need your help.
OUR DEMANDS
- No job cuts
- Keep the team together
- Recognise the workers union, UVW
- Permanent contracts for all the Tower Hamlets SASS team
WHERE THE MONEY GOES
Striking means losing our wages, but we’re doing this because we have no choice. We need a strike fund to stay in this fight—to keep the pressure on and force Solace and the Tower Hamlets council to step up.
Every donation, no matter how small, helps us stand strong for as long as the dispute lasts. Several of us are mothers of young children and without full strike pay we’ll struggle to participate in the strike action.
Your money will help us fight for our jobs, for the survivors we support, and for a system that doesn’t turn its back on the most vulnerable.
This is about more than our jobs. It’s about safety. It’s about justice. It’s about making sure no survivor is left without the support they deserve.
Please donate today. Stand with us. Stand with survivors. Let’s fight for the services that save lives.