1.6 million women in the UK experienced domestic abuse last year (2019). Of these, 1 in 15 were pregnant. That's thousands upon thousands of women and babies, exposed to abuse. And only the ones we know about.

We need your help to end abuse for pregnant women and their children, to break the cycles of abuse that affect generations and to provide specialist support to women during their pregnancy and beyond, to ensure they can not only leave, but stay free from abuse for the long term.

Making the decision to leave an abusive relationship isn't just about fleeing for your life because of physical abuse. It may be sexual abuse, financial abuse, emotional abuse or other types of abuse, and a woman shouldn't have to wait until she fears for her life for someone to be ready to help.

When you have a baby on the way you need stability, comfort, calm, rest and peace. Support, love and care. Not to be worried about where you'll be living tomorrow and how you will afford to survive. Or whether you'll be turned away because you can't claim funded help... although on paper it looks as though you can afford to support yourself, your partner has been controlling your finances so in reality you have nothing.

Once your baby arrives, you need help to care for them - someone to hold the baby when you shower or have a session of counselling. Long term, you'll want to put down roots and feel secure and safe, in a home of your own where your child can grow up happy and healthy, without fear. You may want to return to work, or start a business, or undertake some training to enable you to enter a new career.

But how can you do all this if you are on your own, having fled abuse? There is support in the system for abuse survivors, but none that give pregnant women real choices or tailored support for the long term. Mainly because of huge need and because of a lack of funding in a constantly changing landscape.

We aim to do what we can to change this.

Seeking funding from alternative sources, running as lean as possible, and doing what we can to raise funds without being dependent on local authority, so that we can do what's needed flexibly. Working with local communities to make it happen, local businesses and local donors, where the money raised is spent transparently and donors know where their money has gone.

Working with one woman at a time and her baby, we aim to start changing the future for generations, by supporting them to flee abuse, to be stable and safe in pregnancy and early childhood in a warm, personal, closed family-friendly environment, and giving them the best start as a new family unit. And then, as they move on to new surroundings, we stay constantly in touch, available to support and assist with services if needed.

We aim to provide women with specific, tailored support. That gives them accommodation with no strings attached in the short term, and medium to longer term, provides them with the help and support they need to build a stable, empowered future for themselves and their new baby, once they arrive in the world.

We aim to collaborate with and work alongside the many many fantastic charities and organisations that already do phenomenal work, to meet a very specific need, with a mission to end cycles of abuse for future generations by supporting mothers from pregnancy and into the long term. We want to see women held and empowered to rise up to take control of their futures, and loves and supported as individuals. To be free to fly.