HIDE MY VISIT
phone 01206 500 585

Information for students

History of Colchester and Tendring Women's Refuge

The first refuge in the Colchester and Tendring area opened in December 1977 in response to a desperate need in the locality for a place to which abused women, with their children, could escape from their violent partners. The campaign to establish a safe haven for such women began in 1975 when a small group of feminists, horrified by the evidence which was emerging of widespread domestic violence in contemporary Britain, decided they had to take some action. Their hard work and determination paid off. Eighteen months later they opened the first refuge in Colchester. The house was soon full and, indeed, over the next few years it was frequently overcrowded. But it offered hundreds of abused women support and safety, and over the years it has enabled many women to start a new life free from violence.

During the early days the refuge depended heavily on committed volunteers. However, it gradually attracted sufficient funding to appoint increasing numbers of paid staff. Alongside this, the Trustees' strong desire to meet the needs of women and children escaping violent homes led them to enlarge the range of services the refuge offered. Today, Colchester and Tendring Women's Refuge offers its clients clean and comfortable accommodation and a variety of professionally delivered support services. But, despite the many changes the refuge has undergone over the last forty years, one thing has not changed. The refuge ethos of believing women, promoting self-help and allowing women to determine their own lives remains as strong as ever. The refuge continues to strive to create a world in which women are able to become independent actors in their own right.

This year brings a fresh challenge. Following the Government's Comprehensive Spending Review in the autumn of 2010, we are facing very significant financial cuts. In some departments we have already had to review staff hours. And next year is going to be hard. We expect to see cuts in all our funding streams which will force us to modify the way we run our service generally. However, we are not easily defeated. Getting to where we are today involved a great deal of hard work, and we intend to go on fighting for our clients who remain among the most disadvantaged groups in the country.

Some highlights of refuge history


1977		First refuge opened in Colchester.
1990		Moved into larger, improved premises, now known as The Old House, containing eight self-contained flatlets.
2002-2006		Lottery-funded research project entitled Talking to My Mum carried out in partnership with the University of Warwick. This sought ways of developing communication between mothers subjected to domestic abuse and their children.
2004		Named a winner by the Plain English Campaign for our publicity and information leaflet.
2005		Acquired a second, purpose-built property known as The Big House containing a further twelve self-contained flatlets to meet a huge increase in the demand for accommodation.
2008		Bought a property in Colchester to open an outreach centre which we named For Women. Here women who don't wish to come into a refuge, or who have left the refuge, can get support.
2009		Our Children's department was awarded an Outstanding accreditation by OFSTED.
		Won the Colchester Business Award for Education and Life-long Learning.
2010		Finalist at the Essex Business Awards for Education and Life-long Learning.
2011		Annie Lewis, our Volunteer Co-ordinator, was selected by the Colchester Volunteer Centre for their Volunteer Manager Award.