A group of women in a refuge in Merton have accused the council of side-lining and failing to support them despite joining a national campaign against domestic violence and sexual assault.

Merton Council proudly announced it was pledging support to the ‘UK Says No More’ campaign last month, which aims to ‘get people talking about domestic violence and sexual assault and promote the local help available’.

However, victims of domestic assault currently being sheltered in Merton have accused the council of all but ignoring them.

One woman Elizabeth (whose name has been changed to protect her identity) lives with her eight-year-old son in the refuge, after fleeing a violent partner two and a half years ago.

She said: “The report about the council joining that campaign has really annoyed me and a few of the other women at the refuge, as when it comes to support from Merton Council there’s none that we can access.

“The mayor of Merton [Councillor Brenda Fraser] put her name all across that article, but when I tried to go and see her about my situation I was told she doesn’t ‘deal with’ domestic violence.

“Two weeks ago I tried to get in contact with a community safety officer and to this day I haven’t heard anything back. We have never even met a community safety officer. We have never met the mayor. None of them come to talk to us.”

She added: “I was placed in Merton. It wasn’t somewhere I had chosen. They just had a space here. I have had no support at all from the council since I arrived.

“They need to come and try and build a relationship with these women. We don’t know the area, we don’t know anything. We have been placed here in difficult circumstances and we need support.”

Merton was one of the first London boroughs to join the national No More campaign, and held a launch event on September 12 where the mayor gave a speech to assembled guests before raising a flag in honour of the campaign.

Elizabeth said: “We weren’t invited to attend. The staff at our refuge weren’t invited to attend. I don’t even know what that flag looks like.

“We are the only refuge in Merton, and we’ve been completely side-lined.”

Amanda (whose name has also been changed) lived in the refuge for 10 months before moving into private accommodation.

She said: “I just want to see more support for women in my situation. It’s very hard. A lot of people end up going back to their abusers because they feel forced into it by the lack of support.

“The housing situation is so bad. There’s no offer of accommodation. People are in the refuge for two years, two and a half years at a time. They are taking up valuable emergency space for people who urgently need somewhere to go, just because they aren't being helped into homes.

“Some of these children end up in a refuge for years and years. They don’t know what it’s like to have a real family home.”

Both women said the provider which runs the refuge, Housing For Women, did an excellent job with little council support, and paid tribute to the work of the weekly ‘One Stop Shop’ at Morden Baptist Church which works to support victims of domestic abuse.

Wimbledon Times:

A poster advertising the One Stop Shop

According to council figures, the One Stop Shop has supported 1,209 people since it began six years ago. In the 12 months running up to August 2, 2016, over 1,300 reports of domestic violence were made to Merton police.

The No More campaign began in America, and in the UK is overseen by the refuge and domestic violence support charity Hestia.

A spokeswoman for Merton Council said: “We are proud to have been one of the first London boroughs to sign up to the UK Says No More Domestic Violence campaign. It is imperative that people who have experienced domestic violence get the help they need.

"We already offer support to hundreds of people through our weekly One Stop Shop and also work with a number of Independent Domestic Violence Advocates who are on hand to support women and men who need it.

"We are committed in providing advice and assistance to all those who are experiencing violence or threats of violence and  continue to deliver housing solutions to those in housing need at a time where demand for a home exceeds supply." 

To contact the National Domestic Violence Helpline, call 0808 2000 247.

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