A South Tyneside domestic abuse charity is extending the counselling support it can offer to local children, young people and families thanks to new backing from a regional employer.
Impact Family Services helps domestic abuse survivors reclaim their confidence, rebuild lives and create brighter futures, and gives over 1,000 people every year the chance to heal, grow and thrive in a safe environment.
Based in South Shields, the charity mostly works with clients from across the immediate area, which has the highest rate of domestic abuse in the Northumbria Police region, but it also supports people and families living across the wider North East.
It recently began to offer in-house counselling support for its clients, in order to try to avoid the long waiting times for accessing these services through the NHS.
And now, a £2,000 grant from the Banks Group’s Banks Community Fund has allowed Impact Family Services to commission another 100 hours of counselling sessions from its expert team, which will be delivered over the next six months.
Founded more than 40 years ago to help ex-partners resolve low-level conflict over child arrangements after separation, Impact Family Services now provides open-ended therapeutic, emotional and practical support based on each individual’s situation and needs.
It aims to address the complex effects of domestic abuse on individuals and families, and works closely with local authorities, public sector agencies and fellow charities to help find appropriate solutions for doing so.
Alongside this work, it also works with local schools, and runs regular kids’ clubs and drop-in sessions to provide young people with opportunities that impact positively on their well-being.
Aside from a contribution from the Northumbria Police & Crime Commissioners Office, the charity receives no statutory funding and needs to raise around two-thirds of its annual budget through grant applications and other fundraising activities.
Catherine Marchant, CEO at Impact Family Services, says: “Providing counselling to people who’ve been through trauma is an essential part of helping them find positive ways forward, and we set up our in-house service to ensure it would be available when it was needed by our service users.
“This might be a short-term or a long-term arrangement, depending on each individual’s circumstances and needs, but we know that it will help clients process their trauma, develop emotional resilience and improve their long-term mental well-being.
“Demand for the support, advice and services we offer is sadly continuing to increase, while at the same time, finding the grant funding that is our lifeblood is as challenging as it’s ever been.
“The flexibility of the funding that the Banks Group offered is especially important to us, as it allows us to direct the money towards where we feel it will have the most impact, and we’re really grateful to be getting their backing.”
Jamilah Hassan, community manager at The Banks Group, adds: “Impact Family Services helps hundreds of people across our area get their lives back on track after they’ve come through incredibly difficult circumstances.
“The team’s expertise and empathy makes a practical, long-term impact on their lives, and we’re very pleased to be helping them increase the amount of counselling sessions they can offer.”
The Banks Group’s community funds are independently managed by Point North (formerly the County Durham Community Foundation).
Anyone from a community close to a Banks Group project who is interested in applying for funding from the Banks Community Fund should contact the company via its website enquiry form (www.banksgroup.co.uk/contact-us/) to find out if their group or project is eligible.