“It takes a village to raise a family and a community to recover from abuse” - that’s the message from the organiser of a domestic abuse prevention event coming up.
Vickie Robertson, founder of Kaleidoscopic UK, is set to be joined by domestic abuse survivors and multi-agency professionals at the FBC Centre on Thursday (October 17).
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She told the News: “Having set up Kaleidoscopic UK in January, I wanted to hold a convention to showcase what we can offer through being survivor-led and to help raise awareness of this issue faced by two million people a year.
“We have many more plans but we want the fact that violence comes in many forms to be recognised as it is the effects and the bruises you can't see that can last a lifetime.”
Professionals Dr Nicola Bowes and Dr Rachel Condry are set to showcase some of their research at the convention as two of a range of speakers, including Ms Robertson.
The founder said it was important to have a variety of speakers to raise awareness about how widespread the issue is.
According to SafeLives, each year more than 100,000 people in the UK are at high risk of being murdered or seriously injured as a result of domestic violence.
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Ms Robertson, who is from Finchampstead and is a survivor of child and adult domestic abuse, added: “The subject is still taboo and carries embarrassment and fear about speaking out.
“We have designed prevention programmes for all services and ages to further educate on the signs, symptoms and intricacies so that people are empowered with the knowledge to hopefully recognise it before it's too late and reach out for help.”
Bracknell MP Dr Phillip Lee met with Ms Robertson last week to discuss the work Kaleidoscopic UK is doing, which includes providing local support groups for adults, with sessions for children planned too.
Before resigning as a justice minister in Theresa May’s government in June 2018, Dr Lee worked on a Bill introduce measures to tackle domestic abuse.
Dr Lee said: “It was a privilege to meet with Vickie to learn more about the fantastic and vital work she does through Kaleidoscopic UK to help support survivors of domestic abuse in Wokingham and our local communities.
“We must do more as a society to help prevent abuse in the first place and that’s why I applaud her efforts to not only support survivors but to provide vital training and prevention programmes.”
Ms Robertson said speaking to Dr Lee was like a “breath of fresh air” because of his knowledge around domestic abuse.
She added: “Having an MP publicly back you is amazing and we are so very grateful.
“It takes a village to raise a family and a community to recover from abuse.
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“Only with all working together with the right support and education can we tackle and change the ever-growing number.”
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