City Bridge Trust has awarded a further £71,600 to SSAFA’s Stepping Stone Home, Gildea House, in order to support women whose relationship with a partner in the military has broken down due to the daily reality of domestic abuse and violence.
The grant will be provided over a two-year period to cover the full costs associated with the Housing Manager post.
SSAFA’s Stepping Stone Home offers free accommodation for women and their children following a relationship breakdown. This can prove to be a highly disruptive and upsetting experience for any family, but some women with a military connection face additional complex issues requiring a safe space to begin their recovery.
The City Bridge Trust’s generous grant will secure the post of the Home Manager for a further 24 months, helping women London-wide. The home provides a nurturing and safe environment for women, alone or with their children, to regain their independence following a failed, destructive or abusive relationship with serving or veteran partners from the Armed Forces.
This funding leads on from a previous three-year grant for the service provided by the Trust in 2017, which totalled £102,000. This unwavering support towards SSAFA and the Armed Forces community is so appreciated and will make a huge impact on so many lives.
Jonathan Sandall, Director of Fundraising at SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity said:
“SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity is deeply grateful to City Bridge Trust for yet another exceptionally generous grant. The funds will enable SSAFA to provide critical support to women and children within the Armed Forces community escaping domestic violence. Our Stepping Stone Home provides a comfortable, secure and female-only place to stay for as long as our beneficiaries need our support.”
Dhruv Patel, Chairman of the City of London Corporation’s City Bridge Trust Committee, said:
“The SSAFA’s Stepping Stone Home plays a vital role in enabling women to escape situations of violence and abuse. This funding will help it to carry on helping even more women to find the safety and security they need to begin rebuilding their lives.”
