Shelters

Women living with abusive men are in acute danger of losing their lives. With every passing day their children are at greater physical and psychological risk.

WIZO’s two residential Shelters are safe havens for women and children who have suffered violence and are in immediate danger. The shelters provide therapeutic, social, legal and educational services free of charge to support and prepare women and their children for an independent life, free from violence and abuse. The shelters accommodate families for a minimum of six months. Young children attend the Day Care Centre on site whilst older children are enrolled at nearby kindergartens and schools and provided with tutoring to catch up on any missed school.

The WIZO Safety Net programme helps women as they leave the security of the shelter so that they can become successful, independent members of society and avoid re-entering the cycle of domestic abuse.

The programme includes:

  • Occupational rehabilitation with a view to finding and maintaining a job, the key to financial independence. Training is also provided to ensure competence in today’s digital world.
  • The provision of kits with a range of essential items including small electric appliances, clothing, school supplies, linens, kitchen and household items; all necessary for these vulnerable women and their children as they take their first steps into a violence-free, independent future.
  • The ‘adoption’ programme of the women who emerge from shelters as they begin a new life ensuring that emotional support is ongoing. After months of nurture and support in the shelter, integrating back into the community is daunting. The women are vulnerable, facing new and complex challenges for themselves and their children
Hundreds of women and children – from all communities, religious affiliations and cultural backgrounds – rely on the Safety Net programme to improve their lives and leave the abuse, fear and isolation they have experienced in the past.
Our shelters reached full capacity following the 95% increase in domestic abuse reports during Covid-19 lockdowns. WIZO was the only organisation to swiftly react to this situation and open an additional emergency shelter.