Children and Young People
SAFE Foundation will help break the cycle of domestic abuse and trauma
We are delighted to grant £60,000 to SAFE Foundation Charity and fund their Flourishing Futures programme to combat trauma caused by domestic abuse.
SAFE Foundation is a charity with a bold vision. They are one of the leading domestic abuse recovery organisations in Devon and beyond. They exist to tackle the impact of childhood trauma that affects over 8.4 million people in the UK alone by pursuing their mission of developing pioneering therapy, delivering training, undertaking research and working with partners and policymakers to build a movement to innovate approaches to trauma recovery. SAFE Foundation helped over 1600 individuals last year, and records suggest that around 75 per cent of their clients are female.
The grant given by the MCF to SAFE is substantial and demonstrates the seriousness of the abuse issue and Freemasons’ commitment to tackling it. The cycle of abuse often begins at a young age, and SAFE is attempting to break this cycle at an early stage by offering help to adults and children, not only to those being abused but also the perpetrators of abuse.
Flourishing Futures (FF) will support young people aged 8-18 who have experienced trauma, domestic violence and abuse (DVA) to lead healthy and fulfilling lives. Experiencing DVA is a key predictor of serious youth violence (Home Office 2019). We know that experiencing DVA as a child or young person can set up the trajectory into offending behaviour or victimisation in later life – we want to reduce the risk of exploitation and violence. FF will lead to emotional and practical change, including an increase in feeling safe, expressing emotions healthily, a reduction in agency support and a decrease in risky/offending behaviours. Working partnerships with schools, education staff will expand their knowledge on supporting young people and can share this learning across the school community. By working toward a shared understanding of what sits behind presenting behaviours, we will reduce the demonisation of young men, leading to safer communities. With evidence of impact, FF has the potential to be hugely influential across sectors, supporting young men, developing organisational trauma-responsive approaches, reducing youth violence, and breaking intergenerational cycles of harm. We want to create shared knowledge, language and collaborative structures around trauma and can support organisations to directly deliver FF themselves. The Domestic Abuse Act now recognises children as victims in their own right. Young people tell us they want to feel heard and be seen. They want to have an outlet to share their truth, connect with others and listen to their stories, to use their experiences of recovery to support and empower others. They are the future to unite hearts and minds. Our evidence gathered so far shows our support stimulates long-term healing and recovery, strengthening families by promoting autonomy, growing trust and stability, and redefining a young person’s experience of healthy relationships. By reducing the likelihood of young people repeating devastating patterns of harm, the intergenerational cycle of violence is broken, creating sustainable change, healthy individuals and a thriving society.
