YWCA England & Wales

what we do

Meet the young women we work with

Every young woman who comes to one of our centres has her own story to tell. She may face poverty, abuse, drug addiction or racism.

We'd like you to meet some of the young women we work with. Young women like these tell us about the problems they face day-to-day and what needs to be done to help them. Their stories and opinions create the foundations for our work.

Charmaine

Charmaine was struggling to survive on her low income and turned to fraud.

She was sent to prison and found it difficult to adjust to the outside world afterwards.

Now she is getting the support she needs from YWCA and building a better future for herself and her son.

Hayley

Hayley suffered post traumatic stress disorder after being attacked at school. She turned to alcohol to deal with the situation but her drinking soon spiralled out of control.

Hayley found the help and support she needed at her local YWCA centre. She now wants to use her experience to help others.

Hazel

Hazel left school with no qualifications at 15-years-old.

She thought she had nothing to look forward to and turned to drink and drugs.

Now she is enrolled on a painting and decorating course and is looking forward to a brighter future.

Jenny

Jenny was bullied at school and fell behind in her lessons. She felt let down by her teachers.

YWCA helped Jenny gain confidence and learn new skills.

She is now looking for work and hopes to join the merchant navy.

Kelly

Kelly's boyfriend was unemployed and borrowed lots of money from her. He would often insult Kelly if she refused.

She now realises he was financially abusing her and has ended the relationship.

With the support of YWCA Kelly has started to rebuild her
self-esteem and helps other young women to develop their own confidence.

Kim

Kim's five-year relationship with her boyfriend has ended but she is still paying the £4000 of debt they ran up together. They took out a credit card after he spent lots of money on luxury items, leaving them unable to afford the basics.

YWCA helped Kim to develop her confidence and learn new skills. She is now using her experience to let others know about financial abuse.

Lorna

Lorna lives in a village in South Wales. There's not much to do in the village, and although there is a bus service to the nearest large town, it's beyond the means of most girls.

So they stay in the village and make their own entertainment, which often involves drinking.

 

Natasha

Natasha was battling drink and drug addictions when she came to YWCA and had spent lots of time in prison. She was homeless and had been seperated from her children.

Life didn't look good for Natasha until she joined YWCA's Together women programme.

Natasha has achieved so much since coming to YWCA she won a Woman of the year award on International Women's Day 2009.