Who we are
We know that people who are in controlling and potentially dangerous relationships usually tell their families and friends before they ask for help from specialist services.
We believe that families, friends and community members are best placed to offer support and have an important role to play in helping people subjected to abuse.
We want to give families, friends and community members the information and skills they need to effectively support the people they care about.
​
​
Our Mission
I'm a paragraph. Click here to add your own text and edit me. It’s easy. Just click “Edit Text” or double click me to add your own content and make changes to the font. Feel free to drag and drop me anywhere you like on your page. I’m a great place for you to tell a story and let your users know a little more about you.
​
This is a great space to write a long text about your company and your services. You can use this space to go into a little more detail about your company. Talk about your team and what services you provide. Tell your visitors the story of how you came up with the idea for your business and what makes you different from your competitors. Make your company stand out and show your visitors who you are.
"Families, friends and neighbours are often the first to learn about abuse and can be best placed to offer support. They are the first line of protection for people being subjected to abuse, not services."
.png)
Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse (AAFDA) is a national charity working across England and Wales, providing specialist and expert advocacy and practical and emotional help for families after fatal domestic abuse. AAFDA is also a centre of excellence for reviews into domestic homicides, suicides and unexplained deaths following domestic abuse. We are particularly skilled in Domestic Homicide Review (DHR) methodology and best practice having been closely involved in developing the model with the Home Office since 2008, three years before they became law.
Using our specialist knowledge and collective insights we help agencies to refine their services for victims and to review domestic abuse related deaths more effectively. We provide a unique national voice for the learning that each DHR generates. While no two cases are the same, we believe that each DHR is an opportunity to end domestic abuse.
WWIN (Wearside Women in Need) is a women-led, specialist domestic abuse service that delivers highly respected, trauma-informed victim support services across Sunderland and Wearside. They deliver training for community members and professionals on responding and supporting survivors of domestic abuse.
The Angelou Centre is one of the few surviving black-led women’s organisations in the North East, having been in operation for over 25 years. Critically, the Angelou Centre provides a specialist integrative programme of support for black and minoritised women and children who have been subject to domestic and sexual violence, face multiple forms of discrimination and often have associative complex needs. The Angelou Centre's holistic violence against women and girls’ services comprise of refuge accommodation (including provision for women without recourse to funds), specialist advocacy, outreach, therapeutic support and recovery programmes for survivors.
Respect is a pioneering UK membership organisation in the domestic abuse sector. The charity leads on the development of safe, effective work with perpetrators, male victims, and young people using violence in their close relationships.
The Alice Ruggles Trust was established in 2017 following the murder of Alice by her ex-partner after a relentless stalking campaign.  We aim to raise awareness of stalking and coercive control, to ensure that relevant legislation is effective and adhered to, and to bring about lasting improvements in the management of perpetrators and the protection of victims.  Stalking is a horrific crime that affects 1 in 5 women and 1 in 10 men across the course of their lifetime.  It is a psychological crime leading to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in almost 78% of victims, and, in the worst cases such as Alice’s, is also a violent crime potentially leading to murder.   
The role of Northumbria’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Kim McGuinness, is to give the people of the North East a voice on all things police and crime related as well as making the police answerable to the communities they serve. In her role as PCC, Kim has launched a funding opportunity to give back the proceeds of crime to deserving community causes and has rolled out campaign activity to promote women’s safety on nights out, in parks and on the region’s public transport. Her office is also known for setting up Northumbria’s Violence Reduction Unit. The Unit takes a public health approach and is committed to co-ordinating efforts between police and partners to find long-term solutions to address inequality and deprivation. Her priorities centre around fighting crime, preventing crime and improving lives. Kim is driving a powerful agenda in the North East – to fight crime, we have to fight poverty first.