Thanks for visiting  my JustGiving page! 

I am running the Brighton Half Marathon on 25th February as part of my training for the Paris Marathon in April, and have chosen to take a charity place and raise some money for RISE. 

RISE is a local charity in Brighton giving support to people in Sussex who have been affected by domestic violence . Here are some examples of the great things they do:

• a local domestic abuse helpline 
• a refuge with room for 15 victims and their families who need a safe place to stay 
  
• 1 to 1 caseworkers to help victims negotiate criminal and civil proceedings and solicitors appointments, housing and finance information and form-filling
  
• counselling and support groups for victims and their families
• weekly drop-in surgeries for people who are worried that a family or friend may be experiencing domestic abuse
• training for local schools, businesses and other organisations in domestic abuse awareness

I have chosen this charity because I see a lot of parents and children at work who have experienced domestic violence and do not find it surprising that 1 in 4 women will experience domestic violence at some point in their lifetime. 

Sadly the government has recently announced plans to change the funding for refuges, making it no longer possible for people in the welfare system to use housing benefit to pay for refuge places. This will make it more difficult for victims to find a safe place to stay, meaning that charities such as RISE which can provide free refuge places for people in urgent need are especially in need of our support. 

If you are interested, you can read more about the funding changes here: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/nov/26/womens-lives-at-risk-funding-changes-refuges-charities

And if you want to find out more about RISE and what they to, this is their website: http://www.riseuk.org.uk/index.asp?PageID=1#.Wl-Msrxl_cs

Here's the blurb from JustGiving:

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

Thanks for reading this far, and I don't like asking people for money, but whatever you choose to donate, I will be incredibly grateful!

R xx