Aurora New Dawn is pleased to announce the following job vacancy:

Female ^* Aurora New Dawn DVA Car™ Advocate
AURORA NEW DAWN DVA CARS™

Aurora New Dawn is a female-led charity dedicated to ending violence and abuse against women and girls. Since 2011, we have offered safety, support, advocacy, and empowerment to survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence, and stalking. One of the core ways that we do this is through our DVA Car™ service.

Our DVA Cars™ provide a service whereby every Friday and Saturday night, trained staff head out in police patrol cars to work alongside Hampshire Constabulary to attend reports of domestic abuse. We also run an out of hours helpline so that victims always have somewhere to turn. The aim is to offer independent support and advice to victims and survivors during that window of opportunity: the moment they make the choice to reach out for help. We are now on the lookout for a caring, empathetic and compassionate individual to join our DVA Car™ advocate team.

The candidate will be passionate about supporting survivors of domestic violence and abuse and wants to play a pivotal role in helping victims at the point of crisis. You will be working as part of a collaborative and passionate team, all dedicated to helping women feel seen, heard, and understood.

Whilst experience and knowledge of domestic abuse is a benefit, it is not essential – it is more important to us that we find the right person who can truly support and guide our clients.

Hours of work

Part-time:	30.5 Hours per week (weekend and evening work) 4 shifts per month working with the police. Remaining hours working from home.
Salary	Scale 7: £22,221 per annum, pro rata
Duration:	Funding until September 2024 (possible extension subject to further funding)
Location	Portsmouth and Home Based

*PLEASE NOTE: This post is restricted to female applicants in accordance with Schedule 9 (part 1) of the Equality Act 2010

The Role

This role comprises of two parts, worked on a bi-weekly rotation basis and totalling a 30.5 hours per week:

Week one:

1. To provide an out-of-hours, face-to-face crisis response to incidents of domestic violence working alongside officers from Hampshire Constabulary.
   Friday and Saturday: 17.00hrs – 03.00hrs
2. Out of Hours DVA Helpline – working from home.
   Monday – Friday: 1700-0800hrs
   Saturday – Sunday: either: 0800hrs – 1700hrs or 1700hrs – 0800hrs

Week two:

1. Out of Hours DVA Helpline – working from home (combination of shifts below)
   Monday – Friday: 1700-0800hrs
   Saturday – Sunday: either: 0800hrs – 1700hrs or 1700hrs – 0800hrs

To apply:

For an informal chat about this role please call Lyn Tiller on 02392 479254

To apply please send a CV, covering letter and diversity form to recruitment@aurorand.org.uk, detailing why you think you are suitable for the post. Please add ‘DVA Car™ Advocate’ in the subject heading.

You are advised to read the job description and person specification carefully as the decision to shortlist you for interview will be based on the information you provide in your letter.

Applications are particularly welcome from black and minoritised women.

NB: We do not accept CV’s as an application method.

To save on administration costs we are not able to contact you if your application is unsuccessful, but I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for your interest in our work.

Closing date: Please note there is no closing date for this post, we will keep the vacancy open until we have successfully appointed to the role. We therefore encourage you to please submit your application as early as possible.

Interviews – tbc (Interviews will be conducted via face to face, Zoom or Microsoft Teams)

Important documents:

To download a copy of the Female^*Aurora New Dawn DVA Car™ Advocate job description, click here.

To download a copy of the Aurora New Dawn diversity form, click here.

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In domestic situations, spilling the beans is by no means easy, always a messy business.
And letting the cat out the bag means someone gets the nine tails and the boot. I’ll take it.
Pulling the plug means the baby goes out with the bath water.
So I’m keeping it under wraps behind closed doors.

Spilling the beans is by no means easy.
“Do I look alright?” Brigadier Debonair-Wordsmith asks the mirror. That is a rhetorical question.
Kettle always full and all is squared away.
Spit and polished and spurs jingling, medals swinging, I adore him.
The Ward Room waits and The Mess will follow.
“Sir! Ma’am! (All to attention) Punch Sir?”
(No that’s for me, my Just Desserts.)
“Whore!” “Bitch!” “Disgusting human being!”
But spilling the beans is by no means easy.

Letting the cat out the bag means the boot after all those years of service.
The few friends are invited round but the grief, oh the grief… Is it worth it?
“Can’t you do anything right?”
“Just do as I tell you”
(I do, I really do but tip-toeing on eggshells does take its toll you know, this my Testament of Duty.)
Already tanked up and ready to impress and charm the guests with insight and then when alone bear the brunt of his excess; always the upper hand.
And I will keep the cat in again tonight.

I cannot pull the plug; he said “they’d never believe me…
“You see, if I wanted to kill you, I really would kill you”
Green-faced, bruised and wrists Chinese-burnt
I sit in a hot bath (the hotter the better), burning to know… to melt the numbness, the nothingness that I am, to revive sensation.
Talking to myself, talking to myself
Girlfriends long-gone given up the ghost
When at most I text ‘love to catch-up soon x’
I am in hot water. No Plan A, no Plan B or C or D.
For he is my Baby, my foot-stamping all-controlling Baby
And they would believe me if I pulled the plug and the Baby went out with the bath water.

Behind closed doors and all under wraps
Sit Silence, Assault and Battery while the vile smell of Threat and Control hangs in the air.
“Your word against mine” People listen to me; they love me.”
(Do I care? That is a rhetorical question.)
A shadow of a former self, I sit in view of the garden, looking out for a focal point that never appears.
Staring, waiting, not actually caring about anything now; just waiting for the stumbling drunken entry and unwelcome encore of more fork-tongued abuse to be kept behind closed doors of this, my prison.

Happy Hour Cocktails of Back-Flips, Bites and Punches diluted with the usual seducing Hug Tonic
“Come on…Come on” as he pats my back, “Let’s have a cuddle”
Abusing the punch bag, Abusing the privilege of a wife who at times can just about see the faint outline of her Man’s former self.

Abusing the Privilege, Abusing the concerns of those Brothers in Arms who remain faithful.
Eyes blind-folded, mouths gagged
And hands, trying hard to keep the sound down and the lid on the well known tin of Domestic Silence and Abuse.

I’d had the authority to call the Authorities but had declined the privilege
For fear of the inevitable Messy Business
Of the spilt beans and ensuing insane anger and denial
And the fear of ultimate loss of my lover, my husband.

It was the nth Threat cubed to Life which triggered the chain of events which severed the cycle
And put pay to Hope upon Hope squared that the angry eye of the storm would one day cease and that the New Dawn would welcome Peace, a stranger into our home.

Bruised but not alone in the kitchen and they do follow me, they wrap themselves around me to the point of strangulation Guilt, Loss and Isolation.
“Oh Lord, have I done wrong?..”

Sandy Noble

How can you help?

You can help Aurora raise vital funds during the COVID19 pandemic:

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When I was a kid one of my favourite things to do was go to Canoe Lake in Southsea; for those of you who haven’t been, it’s epic. It’s not really a lake, nor does it have canoes, it’s more like a huge pond, but we like to talk big in Portsmouth. You can get a pedalo (way too over-priced for the amount of work you have to put in moving the monstrosity round the tiny section of the lake they allow you in), or feed the swans with manky bread, but best of all you can take your bacon and string down there and go crabbing. Obviously part of the crabbing experience is looking into other kids buckets to see how well they are doing and comparing your own catch with theirs.

More than anything, the Canoe Lake experience in the day is bustling, summer and winter alike. There is always something there, always someone doing something. The Lake stands central, its grubby sea water laps at the sides, complete with plastic bags and murky foam at times; then at other times the Lake has a peaceful serenity, with the seaside lights reflecting on the water every night, making it seem magical and calm.

Canoe Lake was my life for so many years… but I remember on one occasion going down there with my bucket and bacon and they’d drained it: no swans, no pedalo, no magic. What was left was rubbish: a rusty pram an equally rusty trolley, discarded buckets and string, slime, mud, dirt – you get the picture.

Why am I telling you about this? Well, because I feel like this is what COVID19 has done to life more generally: drained out the water and the magic and what is laid bare is the reality of the underneath.

For me and my team that reality is something that we always see, the rusty items and the discarded buckets represent the lives of the women we support, and they have to live like this ALL THE TIME. These are the women that society prefers to keep hidden out of sight, and the behaviour of the perpetrators they live with are too often ignored.

The violence against women (VAW) movement is constantly shouting about what lies beneath the water, what society doesn’t want to see; about the way survivors have to wade through the mud just to get their head above water for five minutes, about the perpetrators that bind and submerge them back into the murky depths. Like abused women, we in the VAW movement are often ignored too.

But now, suddenly, everyone seems to be aware of victims and survivors. People are talking about them and asking questions, like ‘What will self-isolation mean for domestic abuse victims’?

This is good, of course it is, but it also makes me want to scream! Victims haven’t just appeared out of nowhere, COVID-19 didn’t just make a tonne of men become abusive and increase the risk to the women they live with. COVID-19 didn’t cause domestic abuse, you can just bloody well see it now!

What COVID-19 does is make people look at the ugly rubbish hidden in the lake, and we can’t look away anymore.

Isolation is a key tactic of abusers, so the self-isolation of their victims with full state approval is a lottery win to them. We know it will increase the risk to victims, we know perpetrators are already using symptoms as an excuse not to be arrested.

The response from my sector has been nothing short of inspiring. The small team of 20 women I work with have galvanised strength and come up with creative ways to respond to the clients they care so much about. My first response to the crisis was to sit down and write a safety plan for survivors stuck in self-isolation with perpetrators. I was really pleased that services round the country emailed us for a copy – it certainly isn’t perfect, but it was a start. I had to do something practical, and I think once you’ve been a crisis worker you always revert to type!

But the stark reality is that for those of us working in the sector, right now it feels like we are having to watch our clients through a window. We can’t get to them as easily as we usually can and if we do there are now only two choices: leave or stay. We will find resources and be creative and reach out in the way the VAW movement always does: with tenacity, ingenuity and on a shoe string.

The government made all the staff working in the Domestic Abuse sector key workers. Well, of course they did. They don’t want to have to keep looking at the rubbish in the lake without sending in the troops to deal with it.

But I wonder, what happens after this pandemic is done and the epidemic we deal with every day continues?

As key workers, can we expect respect as well as resources for our ongoing battle fighting male violence against women? Can I expect my teams to be valued and for ringfenced funding that puts an end to year on year grants and insecure job status for them? Will the government prioritise money for frontline services first, without us having to jump through hoops to get just a fraction of the central pot?

Will society finally understand and accept that the lake needs to be cleared daily? And not just (the metaphorical) Canoe Lake, but all the other dark, unseen corners in every street, town, village, and city across the UK?

Or will the lake just be refilled when the pandemic is over, so everyone can go back to pretending none of these problems exist? I guess that’s going to be up to all of us to decide.

Shonagh Dillon

CEO – Aurora New Dawn

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Want to know more about us?

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Aurora New Dawn is pleased to announce the following job vacancy:

Female ^* Community IDVA (Independent Domestic Violence Advisor)

Hours of work

Full-time:	37 Hours per week
Salary	£25,250 (with 1% annual increment)
Duration:	Contract until June 2021. Continuation subject to funding.
Location:	West Sussex, working across working across Worthing & Adur.

*PLEASE NOTE: This post is restricted to female applicants in accordance with Schedule 9 (part 1) of the Equality Act 2010

The Female Community IDVA Role

Aurora New Dawn is a registered charity providing support and advocacy to survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence and stalking.

We are excited to be working in partnership with West Sussex County Council and Safelives to deliver CONNECT: a new and holistic service, created with survivors of domestic abuse and offering a co-ordinated, whole-family response.

We are looking for a skilled, dedicated and passionate individual to take on the role of Community IDVA (Independent Domestic Violence Advisor) within the Connect team, working specifically with victims of domestic abuse who are at medium risk of harm.

The successful candidate will:

• Provide a high-quality frontline service to victims of domestic abuse, working specifically with those clients assessed at medium risk of harm

• Facilitate a 4 week holistic assessment allowing time to gradually build a relationship with each client, incorporating risk and safety, strengths and needs.

• Provide advocacy, practical and emotional support.
• Support clients to identify and build on their strengths, assets and resources, both internal and external, with the aim of increasing resilience.

• Support the facilitation of group programmes and activities including drop-ins at other services to support service users in the community.

All roles within the Connect team will work in accordance with the 7 key principles underpinning the Connect Model:

• Flexibility, consistency and reliability

• Accessibility

• Strengths-based

• Client involvement

• Gender-responsive

• Working together

• Trauma-informed

How to apply for the job:

For further details on this vacancy, please see the combined job description/person specification.

Applications should be in the form of a letter, sent by email to recruitment@aurorand.org.uk, detailing why you think you are suitable for the post. Please put ‘Community IDVA Application’ in the subject line and return your completed diversity monitoring form with your letter.

You are advised to read the job description and person specification carefully as the decision to shortlist you for interview will be based on the information you provide in your letter.

The deadline for all applications is 5pm Monday 17th August 2020.

Interviews –

• Week commencing 24th August 2020 (subject to change)
• Interviews will be conducted via ZOOM

To save on administration costs we are not able to contact you if your application is unsuccessful, but I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for your interest in our work.

Important documents:

To download a copy of the Community IDVA (Independent Domestic Violence Advisor) job description, click here.

To download a copy of the Community IDVA (Independent Domestic Violence Advisor) person specification, click here.

To download a copy of the Aurora New Dawn Diversity Questionnaire, click here.

Aurora New Dawn is pleased to announce the following job vacancy:

Female^[1]* Stalking Advocate

Hours of work

Full-time:	37 Hours per week
Salary	Non Accredited – Grade 7 – £22,221 Accredited* – Grade 8 – – £26,276 *on completion of a role-specific accreditation
Duration:	Contract until 2020. Continuation subject to funding.
Location:	Portsmouth – with travel across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight as required

*PLEASE NOTE: This post is restricted to female applicants in accordance with Schedule 9 (part 1) of the Equality Act 2010

The Female Stalking Advocate Role

Aurora New Dawn is a registered charity providing support and advocacy to survivors of domestic abuse, stalking and sexual violence.

We are looking for an Independent Stalking Advocate to join our Stalking team.

The successful candidate will:

• Provide a high-quality frontline service to individuals experiencing stalking, through both face to face and telephone support.

• Support victims throughout the criminal and civil courts.

• Offer information and signposting on a risk and needs-led basis.
• Provide advocacy, practical and emotional support, empowering victims to act for themselves and engage with services that can help them, thereby increasing self-esteem and reducing isolation.

• Work closely with our multi-agency partners and the Hampshire Stalking Clinic.
• The role is based in our Portsmouth office, but working across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
• A significant part of this role will involve working alongside Hampshire Constabulary to ensure that the voice of the victim is heard throughout the process of evidence capture and investigation.

How to apply for the job:

Applications should be in the form of a letter, sent by email to info@aurorand.org.uk, detailing why you think you are suitable for the post. Please put ‘Stalking Advocate’ in the subject line and return your completed diversity monitoring form with your letter.

The deadline for all applications is 9.00 am 18th October 2019.

Interviews will be held on 22nd October 2019.

You are advised to read the job description and person specification carefully as the decision to shortlist you for interview will be based on the information you provide in your letter.

To save on administration costs we are not able to contact you if your application is unsuccessful, but I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for your interest in our work.

For a discussion about the role, or for any other queries, please contact Lucy Kay (Stalking Service Manager) on 023 92 479254.

Important documents:

To download a copy of the Female Stalking Advocate job description, click here.

To download a copy of the Aurora New Dawn Diversity Questionnaire, click here.

Victims and survivors are our central priority, so as part of National Stalking Awareness Week we interviewed one of our clients, Grace*, who used the Aurora Stalking service – In this blog post Grace speaks to survivors about her experience.

Q: How did you find the support helped you?

A: It’s difficult to adequately express the level of professionalism offered with a genuine empathetic ear from everyone that I dealt with.

The support was a major part of keeping me safe and well physically but more vital mentally.

The support also gave me a realistic understanding of the process that the police and court system have to follow. It gave me a person in the know and company to court, which I was dreading.

Additionally there were practical things that were suggested to aid me keep records, keep safe and keep going.

 

Q: Did getting independent support make a difference?

A: Absolutely it made a huge difference to have support and understanding of the problems faced. Coping strategies and experts who weren’t ‘freaked out’ like some family and friends (understandable yet hard to deal with) was key to keeping my sanity. I am certain that I would not have coped without this support to see things through to the courts and the convictions that followed.

 

Q: What message do you have to share with other victims?

A: Try to focus on the basics of looking after your health with good food, water and try to get some nature (with company if necessary to be safe)

Try to accept that it is not your fault, that you’re not going mad…the brain chunter is going to happen, so find ways to manage it…music, movies, good company and talk it out with trusted friends or the stalking team.

Contact your doctor and keep regular appointments.

Try not to isolate yourself, tell those close to you, work and any other network like spiritual/religious group, neighbours etc. Assess those who are a support or those who may unintentionally add to the stress.

It does get better.

It’s a temporary life hurdle that eventually makes you more resilient, clear on boundaries and clear that you can continue to have a life and that you will not accept any compromise of your boundaries. Also be clear that there are some people who require intervention from the justice system.

You cannot reason with an unreasonable person, get advice immediately from the police or stalking team and stick to it.

 

 

We would like to express a huge thank you to Grace for sharing her experience.

If you are concerned you are being stalked please contact us at stalking@aurorand.org.uk or 02392 479254

For those outside of Hampshire and the IOW you can also contact the services below, they will put you in contact with local specialist stalking services or support you directly:

National stalking helpline – 0808 802 0300 run by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust – The Helpline is open 09:30 to 16:00 weekdays except for Wednesdays when it is open 13:00 to 16:00. The Helpline is not open on bank holidays.

Or

Paladin National Stalking Advocacy Service – Telephone: 020 3866 4107.

*Not her real name

The Aurora Team and trustees invite you to our Annual General meeting – 2019

This is an opportunity for you to come along, meet the team and ask them about the work they do with victims and survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence and Stalking.

There will also, of course, be cake!

Information:

29^th April 2019

Time – 5pm – 6.30pm

Location – Portsmouth – PO1 1PJ

Register to attend:

If you would like to attend please contact us on info@aurorand.org.uk and title the email AGM 2019 – full details of the event will follow after registration

Reviewing the case of Natalie Connolly

Along with many others, we have written to the Attorney General to ask for a review into the case of Natalie Connolly and the unduly lenient sentence given to her killer, John Broadhurst.

As ever our thoughts are with Natalie’s family and friends. We hope in some way we can help support them and bring justice to her. Her life meant something to them, and to us, and her death is currently the script of her killer.

You can write to the Attorney General at to ask for a review into this unduly lenient sentence at uls.referrals@attorneygeneral.gov.uk.

A copy of our letter

Dear Attorney General,

I am writing as the CEO of a charity that supports victims and survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence and stalking in the South East of England. I have worked in this sector for over two decades.

I was shocked and saddened to see the case details of Natalie Connolly emerge this week and the sentence that was passed down to her killer, John Broadhurst. Broadhurst received three years and eight months. I am shocked and confused that this case was changed halfway through the murder trial to being tried under manslaughter. Given the circumstances of the case, I am further disappointed and appalled at what appears to be an unduly lenient sentence handed to Broadhurst by Justice Julian Knowles.

It is noteworthy that this sentence was handed down on the same day as the publication of the third Femicide Census, which evidences the murders of women in the UK over 2017 and the sheer impact and brutality that male violence has on women in this country.

Natalie received 40 separate injuries to her body. Including internal trauma, a broken left orbital bone, facial injuries and a bottle inserted into her vagina which broke and severed an artery.

The case appears to be one where the Justice system asserts that Natalie “consented” to being murdered. Natalie has been forgotten and justice has been denied of her. For example, Justice Knowles comments in his sentencing remarks:

“24. I cannot be sure that Natalie was not capable in fact of consenting, notwithstanding her extreme intoxication, and I will proceed on the basis that she did indicate her consent to being beaten by you with a shoe and with your hand.

25. I also accept that some of the injuries Natalie suffered, including the bruising to her head and the blow out fracture to her left orbit – which were probably her most serious injuries – may have been caused accidentally as she stumbled around in a heavily intoxicated state and collided with objects or caught herself in the face with her watch. I do not hold you responsible for those.”

I am concerned that the law has not been applied correctly here with particular reference to capacity to consent under the Sexual Offences Act 2003:

• Section 74 defines consent as ‘if he agrees by choice, and has the freedom and capacity to make that choice’. Prosecutors should consider this in two stages. They are:

“Whether a complainant had the capacity (i.e. the age and understanding) to make a choice about whether or not to take part in the sexual activity at the time in question.

Whether he or she was in a position to make that choice freely, and was not constrained in any way. Assuming that the complainant had both the freedom and capacity to consent, the crucial question is whether the complainant agrees to the activity by choice.

The question of capacity to consent is particularly relevant when a complainant is intoxicated by alcohol or affected by drugs….”

The statements by Justice Knowles appear to contradict themselves. How could Natalie be so intoxicated that in his view she was able to break her own bones from “stumbling around” yet in this intoxicated state she still, in his view, has the capacity to consent?

Broadhurst has shown no remorse in his treatment and killing of Natalie, he left her bleeding and dying at the bottom of the stairs, went to bed and slept. His words to the call handler when he did decide to call was that Natalie was “as dead as a doughnut”. The paramedics stated he showed no remorse for Natalie’s death.

Evidence was submitted to the jurors that Broadhurst was jealous and controlling and wanted to teach Natalie “a lesson” for chatting to other men. He certainly took control of Natalie’s life, he ended it. This is the ultimate control and the last use of power from a man who, in my view, saw Natalie as nothing more than his property to use, abuse, rape, mutilate and kill.

The only person’s voice that has been heard in this case is that of Broadhurst, a man whose behavior seems very typical of a predatory abuser in relationships. A man whose view of Natalie was so little he has written a script for his killing of her that blames her entirely and his script has been accepted by the justice system.

Victims and survivors will have seen this news. Victims and Survivors will read it. They will know that their version of Broadhurst is reading it too.

We, therefore, request a full in-depth review into the case of Natalie Connelly. Her death has affected many, not least her child, her siblings, her family, and her friends, but survivors everywhere. It is imperative that in honouring the life of Natalie, this case is reviewed and the right message is sent out to perpetrators of male violence against women.

Yours Sincerely,

Shonagh Dillon LLB

CEO – Aurora New Dawn

Domestic Abuse, sexual violence and stalking affect thousands of people every day, including those in the Armed Forces Community.

We understand that members of the Armed Forces, and their families, are often worried about disclosing or seeking support around these issues, and that they can face a number of additional, unique barriers in doing so.

That’s why Aurora New Dawn provides a dedicated service to Armed Forces Personnel and their families. Our specialist advocate understands the Armed Forces Community, and how difficult it can be to come forward. The support we provide is confidential, independent, non-judgemental and free.

We offer support to anyone aged 16 and over, who is experiencing domestic abuse, sexual violence and/or stalking:

– Where the victim is a serving member of the armed forces themselves,  or

– Where the alleged perpetrator(s) is a serving member of the armed forces.

Our support is client-led, which means that we will work with you, on a one-to-one basis, to offer advice tailored to your individual situation and support needs. We work closely with all our clients to increase their safety, reduce the risk of harm, and support them in moving forward.

If you would like support or advice, you can call, text or email Lynne on:

07496 333473

armedforces@aurorand.org.uk

The Service is open Monday – Friday, 8am to 4pm

Armed Forces poster

The Aurora New Dawn Armed Forces Advocate (AFA) is funded by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust.

What does it mean to be one of our top 18 most amazing sisters? Furthermore, why are we dedicating this article to this year’s Aurora sisterhood? Indeed, this International Women’s Day seems like the most perfect time to look into who these amazing sisters are and what they have done.

International Women’s Day is held every year on 8^th March to celebrate the movement for women’s rights. At Aurora we want to celebrate the women who have inspired and driven us to make a difference to victims and survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence and stalking.

The Aurora team pulled together a list of their top 18 most amazing sisters for 2018, each woman has inspired us in our work and their efforts mean a lot to us. It goes without saying that these sisters keep us going when the work gets tough.

Who are our top 18 most amazing sisters?

Who are our top sisters? The list of women we have chosen represent the undeniable contributions they have made to the violence against women sector. All these women have formed part of the history of our movement from re-establishing reclaim the night marches, fundraising and naming the women who have died at the hands of male violence to tackling the obvious oppression of women in the legal system.

They are not in any particular order – in our eyes every single one of these women is a total warrior and #TeamAurora thank every single one of them from the bottom of our feminist hearts and boots.

Karen Ingala-Smith

For her heart breaking annual search and recording of ‘counting dead women’ murdered at the hands of men which reminds us all why we work in this sector. If ever we need reminding why we do this work we look at Karen’s website and take heart that Karen names those women for us all to continue our work in their honour.

Professor Amanda Robinson

For her work around the identification and management of priority perps, which has been really influential in our own services, research and practice.

Rachel Williams

For being a total warrior and overcoming her horrific experiences of DA to fight consistently for victim’s voices to be heard.

Jean Hatchet

For her tireless campaigning and fundraising for women who have been murdered, she adds her voice to the VAW sector in an empowering and inspiring way and uses her social media platform for the benefit of survivors. We love her for her sheer tenacity, focus, wit and even when she is angry her grammar is impeccable!

Diana Barren

For changing the lives of high risk victims of domestic abuse and the landscape in which we work. She was the driving force for the implementation of IDVA’s across the UK and her work has undoubtedly saved lives.

Polly Neate

For her astounding work achieved in just four years as CEO at Women’s Aid. She took the organisation through instrumental change and made us all remember why Women’s Aid was initiated in the second wave feminist movement of the 1970s. In particular her work on the Child First campaign is both heart wrenching and life changing for murdered children and their surviving parents.

Harriet Wistrich

For being the best kind of woman! She has been a lawyer for years. Harriet has changed the lives of the women she represents in court and in equal measure in every case she impacts hugely on the VAW sector. We watch her cases in anticipation as I know what she does centres women who have experienced abuse. She seems to have the Midas touch when it comes to influencing change in the legal system for women.

Rachel Horman

For being another amazing lawyer. We like Rachel’s blog posts in particular as she makes legal speak understandable. We often advise survivors to look at her posts and they say it always helps them to understand their experiences.

Sylvia Walby

A total guru! Her research into the costs of DVA has undoubtedly made it easier to show the people in power why they should be spending money on supporting victims and survivors. The stark costs of ignoring the issue make our jobs easier when we are trying to get funding for vital services.

Jasvinder Sanghera

We love her books. We have been lucky enough to listen to her speak and her work has really inspired us to understand the differences needed and the best organisations to contact when supporting victims of so called honour based violence.

Laura Richards

For her work on the DASH risk assessment tool which has undeniably changed the sector for the better, we now all talk to each other about risk of our clients and the DASH tool enables us to have a shared common language for murder prevention for victims and survivors of domestic abuse. The DASH save lives and we have Laura to thank for that.

Marai Larasi

For being a beacon of hope. Her work with IMKAAN has been ground breaking and her laser sharp focus on BAME women and the compounding factors of intersectionality are so inspiring. We loved seeing her at the golden globes, she totally deserved to be there and her smile makes us smile.

Dr Finn Mckay

For reviving the Reclaim the Night Marches in London which had a ripple effect across the UK cannot be underestimated. She was the inspiration for our RTN marches in Portsmouth and she made us want to march in solidarity with her and all the women across the country.

Roxanne Gay

For her work on trauma, women and feminism and whose writing style and championing of women we find truly inspirational.

Julie Bindel

For her long term contribution and involvement in the feminist movement of which she has been an active part since 1979. Her global campaigning for women experiencing male abuse in all its forms is inspirational and we love her.

Professor Liz Kelly

For dedicating her life’s work to researching the impacts of violence against women and as an activist for over 40 years we think everyone should take time to read her work and learn something.

Pragna Patel

For her work with Southall Black sisters (SBS) which has been monumental in our practice. She and the work of SBS consistently remind us why we need to keep fighting for all black and Asian women living in the UK and focus on the challenges they face when experiencing violence and abuse.

Sarah Green

For being incredibly supportive to us as an organisation. She reached out to us when things got tough and is always on the end of an email. Her publications for EVAW are always brilliant and her voice as an advocate for our sector is truly inspiring.

Lastly but by no means least we want to honour all the victims and survivors we have ever been lucky enough to work with, speak to and support. Working with them and experiencing their voices and stories daily is inspiration enough for us to continue to fight for a world where we end violence against women and girls. They win on the amazing sisters list every time!

Why do we celebrate our sisters on March 8th?

Every year on the 8th of March, International Women’s day (IWD) is observed. This is a day dedicated to acknowledging and celebrating the achievements of women. Therefore, although we recognise how amazing they are all year round, we wanted to acknowledge the work of our amazing Aurora sisters.

If you would like to know more about women’s day, check out the video below.

What is International Women’s Day?

 

All our love and solidarity

#TeamAurora

#ForTheVictimsAndSurivors

#IWD2018

 

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