Dear all,

Thank you for celebrating our 40th birthday and giving a charity donation to Solace Women's Aid. 

As much as we like glorious birthday gifts this is a cause we really care about which is why we've asked you to help. Any donation small or large will make a difference. 

                Thank you, Thank you, Thank you on behalf of the women and children.

                                                                                                                                   Sanja and Marijana

Here's a bit more about where your money will go! 

At Solace Women's Aid we work with women and children in London affected by domestic and sexual violence and provide a range of services to help them escape and live safely.

This fund is especially for women who come to Britain from abroad and are trying to leave a violent partner but cannot find a service or refuge to help them because they cannot access any benefits in the UK. We already work with women in this situation but there are many, many more who need our help but we don't have the resources to support them.

Women and children in this situation are extremely vulnerable and often continue to experience severe violence or start living on the streets as a way to escape - we want to help them.

Last year Solace Women's Aid provided support for 3,500 women and children who were fleeing violence and we hope to increase this number in 2010. London has higher rates of domestic violence than the average for England and Wales, a quarter of women in the UK will experience domestic violence at some point in her life and two women are killed each week in this country by their current or former partner.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.