Leighton Buzzard charity receives funding to support victims of domestic abuse

A Leighton Buzzard based charity received funding from the Home Office to support the work it does in helping victims of domestic abuse during the pandemic.

A grant of £130,000 has enabled KidsOut to deliver £25 supermarket vouchers to families living in refuge between July and October.

The funding is part of the government’s £750 million charity support package.

KidsOut, based in Church Square, work with every Women’s Aid Federation refuge in the UK to support children who have experienced domestic violence.

With the Home Office’s backing, the charity is extending its supermarket voucher initiative for families in refuge lacking other means of support.

Over July and August, KidsOut delivered two rounds of £25 supermarket vouchers to roughly 1,300 families in refuge across the UK.

This will be repeated until the end of October, with up to 5,200 vouchers being delivered in total.

The families receiving support through this initiative are those KidsOut has identified as being in the greatest need.

Even when families do have access to avenues of support, they may be unable to leave their refuge and receive it for fear of being found by their abuser.

In collaboration with the Home Office, KidsOut is providing direct support that families can easily access from within their refuge.

Gordon Moulds CBE DL, KidsOut CEO, said: "This phenomenal contribution from the Home Office will radically transform the experience of mothers and children as they enter refuge.

"The vouchers for their local supermarket will enable mothers to purchase essential goods and groceries, alleviating some of the financial pressures that have been exacerbated by the coronavirus outbreak.

"Families fleeing from domestic violence to a women’s refuge can often be forgotten, and it is KidsOut’s job to guarantee that their needs do not go overlooked at this time of extreme difficulty.”

A Refuge worker said: “The vouchers have been really beneficial for the families with us. The children were not attending school before lockdown so unable to qualify for school vouchers.”

The July to October supermarket voucher initiative follows similar projects carried out by KidsOut at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

With the support of funders like the Direct Line Group, the National Lottery Community Fund in Scotland, and the London Community Response Fund, KidsOut was able to provide 8,901 supermarket vouchers to families self-isolating in women’s refuges between April and June 2020.

This was the first time the charity had provided supermarket vouchers to families in refuge, with the project receiving a tremendous response.

Like many in the voluntary sector, KidsOut’s financial security has been threatened by the coronavirus, with the charity losing upwards of £800,000 from cancelled fundraising events.

Thanks to the Home Office funding, KidsOut has been able to continue its essential aid for children in refuge, ensuring that mental and physical health is protected.

One mother said: “I had to spend my shopping money on school uniforms, so this voucher came at a good time and was really helpful, thank you!”

For more information about KidsOut, visit: www.kidsout.org.uk.