Hello everyone,

Welcome to my Just Giving page.

As many of you know, I used to work in the Violence Against Women and Girls Sector. In my last role, I was an Outreach Worker for Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid (BSWA), supporting women and children who had recently experienced domestic abuse.

BSWA help victims and survivors to find new housing after being made homeless when they leave their abuser; they support victims to find new jobs; they act as advocates when the Department for Work and Pensions tries to stop a family’s disability benefits; they help victims get the right medical treatment and access to counselling services; they support women in taking their abusers to court and help their children to attend new schools so that, as a family, they can build a better and safer life together.

Working at BSWA was one of the most challenging but formative periods of my life. Every day I was inspired and humbled by the strength and bravery shown by both the service users and staff alike. BSWA not only provides some of the most vulnerable women and children with a safe place to go, but they also offer practical support and advice. I came away from the organisation believing that they were the fourth emergency service, and that specialised services like BSWA are vital to the welfare of the women and young people they support in the community.

I was lucky enough to witness first-hand the work that they do, and that is why I would like to raise money for them by running the Birmingham Half-Marathon.

My running history has been incredibly patchy, and I only have a 10 km race to my name, but through a combination of running, walking and potentially crawling, I will cross the finish line for BSWA.

Please give as much as you can, I appreciate every penny!