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IS EVERYTHING OK AT HOME?
Wigtownshire Women's Aid might be able to help!
Meet Laura who is our Outreach Worker for Children and Young People!
WHO ARE WIGTOWNSHIRE WOMEN'S AID?
They are a group of women who support women and their children by providing
advice, support and safe housing for women and their children who have
or are experiencing domestic abuse.
WHAT IS DOMESTIC ABUSE?
Abuse is when one person hurts or bullies another person, e.g. hitting,
slapping, punching, pushing, throwing things, name calling, threatening
and controlling behaviour. Domestic abuse is when this abuse
happens between two people in a family or between two people who are
dating, living together, married or have children together. Usually
men are the abusers and women are the ones getting hurt but domestic
abuse can happen to men too.
WHO DOES IT HAPPEN TO?
Domestic abuse can happen to anyone - no matter what race or religion
you are, or how much money you have. Domestic abuse can happen
to adults or it can happen to teenagers in a dating relationship. Domestic
abuse happens all over the world. Children and young people can
also get hurt by domestic abuse. Watching one parent hit or frighten
the other can make you feel scared. Some children also get abused
by other members of their family.
DO YOU THINK DOMESTIC ABUSE HAPPENS IN YOUR HOME?
Every family is different. It is normal for parents to argue sometimes
when they don't agree on something but it is not okay for people to hit
one another. Home is where you should feel supported and protected. No-one
in your house should hurt one another. If you are afraid in your
own home of one parent or yourself getting hurt then things probably
aren't quite right.
WHAT CAN YOU DO IF THIS MIGHT BE HAPPENING TO YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW?
This is where Laura can help. You can contact Laura for any information,
advice or just to talk something over at:
Wigtownshire Women's Aid Offices at 8 St. John Street, Stranraer
Telephone: 01776 703104
Text: 07738 997914
E-mail: laura_mcharrie@yahoo.co.uk
Laura will then give you advice on what your options are to help you
through this difficult time. As an outreach worker, Laura can come
to you if you stay in Wigtownshire, i.e. from Creetown to Stranraer and
all surrounding villages and she could either see you at school, home,
youth groups, community centres or wherever you feel comfortable. For
your own safety, she may need to talk to other adults. This sounds
scary but she is only doing it to help you. You can tell Laura
what adults you think it would be safe to talk to. If you live
outwith Wigtownshire, you can still contact Laura who will do her best
to give you more information about help available in your area.
Of course you can talk the police, your teacher, social worker, doctor,
friend, neighbour or relative.
You can go online and get help from these websites:
www.connexions-direct.com
www.thehideout.org.uk
www.there4me.com
www.worriedneed2talk.org.uk
www.burstingthebubble.com
You can also telephone:
NSPCC - 0808 800 5000
Childline - 0800 1111
Remember - you are not the only person this is happening to and the
best thing to do is talk about your fears!
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