What we do
Your stories
Michelle: I am writing in support of young mums, having faced a similar situation to a lot of these stories and I had my son at 24!! (but I look younger). I got a degree, got a job with a salary of 26k, we bought a house, then three years later got married and fell pregnant. I worked with 9 women aged 34 to... more
Bubblees: Young mums have always got a bad press. People assume we are all single, skint and useless. I had my daughter when I was 17. I am ... more
Don't get into debtDon't get into debt: "I'm on benefits and everything just seemed to get really, really tight. All these people were emailing me about loans and they was... more
- I can't win Cassie: I'm 17 and I recently moved into a hostel. I applied for benefits about a week ago because I'm living on £30 a week. I find the hostel a bit... more
- Any job would do Sammy: I don't really know what I want to do in the future. I've applied for a few shop jobs but haven't found any work. I just need a chance to get... more
- Appalling careers advice Jo: The careers advice I got at school was appalling. I had one interview with a careers advisor and that was it. At the end of the interview he... more
- Painting her future Hazel: I did a college course in painting and decorating. I thought about hair and beauty but there isn't really any money in it and so many women ... more
- Unfair pay between men and women Anna: My boyfriend’s a plumber and he was on much more money than me when I was an apprentice. He’s still on double what I was on. He was on £... more
- My step-dad abused me Jasmine: My step-dad mentally, physically and sexually abused me. He used to hit me, do stuff to me and mess with my head. I used to cry all the time... more
- I'm just like any other mum Gemma: I have an 11-month-old son called Ellis. I fell pregnant with him when I was 14. When I went for my scan the lady scanning me told me I should... more
- Generations of love and learning Karen: I had my son 26 years ago when I was just 14. My mother and father were both working class and extremely moralistic so they decided that the... more
fact
Women in custody are more than five times more likely to have mental health problems than women in the general population
fact
Women are more likely than men to owe money to local money lenders. The majority of users of illegal lenders are women, mainly with families
fact
A quarter of women in the UK experience domestic violence in their lifetime
fact
From April 2007 to March 2008 1,317 girls and young women had their work at YWCA either recorded
or accredited with a qualification
their stories
Hayley
Hayley suffered post traumatic stress disorder after being attacked at school. She turned to alcohol to deal with the situation...
