What's Going On?

We recently launched a new charity, Tiger DASH. We provide extracurricular activity funding for children from single parent, low-income families who may have witnessed domestic abuse, as we believe these are the children who would most benefit from additional opportunities and role-models. D.A.S.H. stands for Domestically Abused Single-parent Households and these are the families we support.

We believe that providing stable role-models and opportunities to children is one of the best ways of breaking the perpetual cycle of domestic abuse.

We will negotiate with extra-curricular activity providers to take on our funded children at a reasonable rate, to ensure that donated funds go as far as possible, support as many children as possible and for as long as possible.

Why Domestically Abused Single-parent Households?

I'm fortunate enough to have grown up in a family where myself and to my knowledge, those around me did not directly experience domestic abuse, I did however grow up in a low-income single-parent household. Fortunately for me, even though my mother didn't have much (if any) disposable income, she did fund my Taekwondo training, which was my one extra-curricular activity from the age of 8.

This martial arts instructor was always one that I would be working hard to impress. Having that stable role-model in my life, I feel, is one of the main reasons that I was able to (somewhat) stay on track in my younger years, and one of the main reasons I was successful in my industry later in life.

However, those who have experienced domestic abuse have an additional layer of challenges. 52% of children who experienced abuse before the age of 16 also experienced domestic abuse later in life (ONS). 60% of women entering the criminal justice system have also experienced domestic abuse (-MoJ).

We feel that by providing children with additional role models, like the ones we had when we were young, that we can improve outcomes for these children and help reduce the perpetual cycle of domestic abuse in the future.

If you would like to donate, there's a link on this page, or for those that would like further detail, there's an example case study below.

We are registered for Gift Aid, please select Gift Aid if you are a UK taxpayer and are donating with personal funds.

Please only donate what you can afford, and on behalf of myself, the Tiger DASH committee members, and those families we fund, thanks so much for your support 🙏

Tiger DASH Example Case Study

Please note that all names have been changed, and that this story is a combination of multiple real-world cases of students that we have funded, so as to ensure complete anonymity.

Kaleb is the eldest sibling of three, and is 7 years old. When he was even younger, he was in a situation where felt like he had to take care of his younger sisters, due to neglect and domestic abuse. This trauma in Kaleb's early childhood is something he is still processing.

Kaleb acts like an adult in some ways, feeling like he still has an obligation to look after his younger sisters, and is prone to angry outbursts when he can't express himself or feels as though something is unfair.

Kaleb and his siblings are currently living with his dad, as mother is no longer present. Due to some domestic abuse and neglect in past, dad needed to move out of the home with the children. Dad is currently living with his parents (Kaleb's grandparents), though there is not much income in the household, and the living situation is temporary, until Dad can be rehomed elsewhere with the children. Kaleb's mother is living elsewhere with a new partner, and does not have contact.

Kaleb and his sisters would like to take part in some extracurricular activities, though there is not enough income in the household for this to happen. Kaleb has been identified as a child that Tiger DASH can fund, and Tiger DASH is in contact with the school about activities that Kaleb and some other children can take part in.

Even though Kaleb can be prone to angry outbursts, and even strike out at others sometimes, it's established that Kaleb would do well to learn to channel his emotions through 1 on 1 music lessons, and that this contact time would help improve his future outcomes. A way has been found to enable Kaleb to study these, at no cost to dad or grandparents. Kaleb is very excited about the idea of doing this.

In addition, Kaleb would like to be involved in a residential trip, where his classmates will be staying away for a few days, climbing, kayaking and abseiling. Tiger DASH has reached out to the activity centre to negotiate a discount for Kaleb and a few other children who have experienced trauma and are in challenging living situations, to see if they can attend.

Through a combination of school-funding, Tiger DASH funds, and activity provider discounts, Kaleb and these other children are able to take part in the school trip and other extracurricular activities such as art clubs, dance clubs, where they would otherwise not have the opportunity due to financial barriers.

We hope that with this exposure to new opportunities and regular role-models, that Kaleb and the other children can find a vent for their frustrations, grow out of their comfort-zones, and experience things that children from conventional backgrounds are able to experience.