My husband treated me as a second-class citizen. I was not allowed my own bank account, despite holding down an office job. I could not spend time with friends unless granted by my husband. He would and tell them they were not needed.

Five years ago, the abuse escalated, when Hamza’s mother discovered she was in a relationship with a man her mother did not approve of. Her mother’s objection was partly due to her wish for Hamza to marry the son of a family friend. Hamza expressed concern that she could be…

The peer mentor role is for women who have lived experience of the criminal justice system, to offer additional support to the women accessing our services at Advance’s Minerva. As part of Minerva’s Wrap-Around project, we specifically support women with multiple disadvantage alongside their experience of the criminal justice system,…

I was completely shattered – psychologically broken. I had no understanding of any support available out there for me but my doctor referred me to Advance. My husband beat me up, threatened me with a knife while I was pregnant – he wanted to leave me and get married to…

Over the last five years, Advance has developed its specialist Minerva community support for young women and girls aged 15-24 in contact with the criminal justice system.

Christina*, 50, reported her abuser and took him to court four years ago. She and her two children are safe now, but it was a long journey to get where they are today. She says: “One of the hardest parts was trying to explain, to police, an isolated incident that…

Marie says that her favourite part of the job is being able to work on developing stronger relationships between mental health and domestic abuse services,

At 9:00am, since working remotely as a result of Covid restrictions, I start my day with a ‘Good Morning Check-In’ with my colleagues, manager at Advance and the Housing team in the borough I work in.

I’ve always turned to my faith to help me through hard times (rosary beads above my bed) but it was at this point I knew I had to reach out for help from Minerva. The fear of the unknown creeped in and I found myself really struggling being thrown out…