Member Focus - Women's Aid

Womens aid Logo

Women's Aid 5 Wilton Place Dublin 2

Tel : 01 678 8858
Freephone : 1800 341900
Email : info@womensaid.ie
Website : www.womensaid.ie

Member Profile

We know that every day in Ireland women are raped, beaten, and trapped in their own homes but those closest to them - their boyfriends, husbands and partners. For most of us, home is a place of respect, love and safety. But for one in five women in Ireland, home can also violence, fear and abuse.


Women's Aid's 16 Days Public Action Outside Dáil Éireann in 2008Women's Aid's 16 Days Public Action Outside Dáil Éireann in 2008

 

Direct Services to Women
Our direct services to women experiencing domestic violence underpin and inform all our work toward ending violence against women.
The Women's Aid National Freephone Helpline (1800 341 900) operates from 10am to 10pm, every day of the year (except Christmas day), and provides support and information to callers experiencing abuse from intimate partners.

Our Support Services Team provide more in-depth one to one information and support, Monday to Friday, in six locations throughout Dublin: Ballymun, Cabra, Coolock, Dublin City Centre, Dun Laoghaire and Swords. Other meeting points for Support Meetings include hospitals, or other locations chosen by women for safety reasons. Referrals to our Support Services come via the National Freephone Helpline, as well as from a range of other services such as An Garda Síochána, GPs, social workers and hospital staff.

The Support Services Team also offer a Court Accompaniment Service, which provides advocacy and support specific to the particular needs of women seeking legal redress regarding violence by a current or former husband or partner.


All of the above services to women operate from and are underpinned by the following principles:

  1. Complete confidentiality.*
  2. Maximising women's safety at all times.
  3. Understanding the trauma of violence and supporting women's increasing autonomy while recognising the woman as expert in her own situation.
  4. Being informed and knowledgeable about the rights, entitlements and options for women and ensuring referral is appropriate and responsible.
  5. Advocating for women's rights.
  6. Addressing additional barriers and discriminations that women experience.
  7. Being committed to ensuring justice for the victim and accountability and sanctions against violent men.
  8. Becognising the best form of child protection in domestic violence situations is woman protection.
  9. Supporting women to move from crisis to safety and independence.
  10. Ongoing commitment to action for political and institutional change.
  11. Encompassing key feminist principles within the philosophy and ethos of the organisation.


*Women's Aid has a policy in line Children First guidelines.

Women's Aid also:

  • Trains students at the Garda Training College.
  • Provides specialised training to assist a wide range of agencies in providing appropriate services to women experiencing domestic violence including: nurses, social workers, doctors, mental health workers, family support workers, community care workers, and mixed professionals working with adults and children out of home.
  • Continues it's role as Specialist Support Agency on Violence against Women to Community Development Projects and Family Resource Centres nationwide, providing training and information to over 300 community groups.
  • Is represented at policy level in both national and local fora such as the National Steering Committee (NSC) on Violence against Women, the Legal Issues and the Public Awareness Sub-committees of the NSC, the Irish Observatory on Violence against Women, the Women's Human Rights Alliance, the Legal Aid Board External Consultative Panel and the Courts Service Users Panel.
  • Works to raise awareness of the complexity and devastating consequences of domestic violence through a variety of means from media activity, provision of information, collation of statistics, and campaigns such as the 16 Days of Action Opposing Violence against Women.
  • Conducts research in the area of domestic violence and seek to influence legislative change to improve state responses to women experiencing domestic violence.

Women's Aid is only too aware of the reality of violence against women. There is a constant demand for all our services. We hope that you will help Women's Women's Aid 16 Days of Action Public Action outside Dail Eireann, 25th November 2009 which highlights domestic violence in Ireland.Women's Aid 16 Days of Action Public Action outside Dail Eireann, 25th November 2009 which highlights domestic violence in Ireland.Aid continue to support women who are being abused as well as join with us in our struggle to create a society which does not accept violence against women.

 

Our mission statement:
Women's Aid is a feminist, political and campaigning organisation committed to the elimination of violence and abuse of women through effecting political, cultural and social change. Women's Aid provides direct support services to women experiencing male violence and abuse. This work underpins and informs all other goals and actions of the organisation.

Our ethos and Principles:

  • Women's Aid works from the principles of empowerment, collective action, self-help and mutual aid, inclusion and equality.
  • Women's Aid recognises the diversity of women's lives and aims to be accessible to all women.
  • Women's Aid is committed to ensuring that the principles that inform our work with women experiencing male violence, reflects the manner in which we operate internally as an organisation.

Our latest Annual Statistics Report for 2008 can be downloaded here:

All other publications and reports can be downloaded from the publication section of our website