Amy thought it was all her fault. Maybe if she picked up her dolls faster, her dad wouldn’t have gotten angry enough to punch and kick her mum. Maybe if she didn’t cry so noisily, her dad wouldn’t have put out cigarettes on her mother’s skin.

Something we see too often in children once they’re away from domestic and family violence is that the terror doesn’t stop - Amy often begs and pleads not to go to school and cries in panic when she is away from her mum, because she has been so conditioned to worry that something will happen to her mum when she is not there. She also loves to draw but takes her art book and pens to bed with her every night, so that no one can throw them away because that’s what her dad did to anything she cared about.

That’s why we urgently need your support to help Amy and many children like her to find safety from domestic and family violence.

Your generosity would mean that we would be able to provide Amy and Rebecca with emergency crisis accommodation to escape a very dangerous situation quickly and safely. Amy would also benefit from art therapy to help her process all the trauma she has seen, felt and suffered through the violence of her father. She will also be able to join a supported playgroup where she can slowly heal through making friends, doing fun activities and just being a kid again.

Your help will provide Rebecca with safety planning, financial and legal support so she and Amy can gain independence and start rebuilding their lives away from their abuser.