Women’s voluntary and community organisations are a cornerstone for sustainable and stable communities, and are crucial to the advancement of equality and women’s rights.

In our survey into the effect of Covid-19 on the UK Women's Sector, Black and minoritised women’s organisations reported markedly more demand than other organisations in the following areas: emergency basic services; refuge beds; enquiries/signposting and mental health support. 58% of all organisations who completed the survey are a bit or very worried about surviving this crisis. 14% reported being very worried. 

As an Intermediary Partner to Comic Relief, WRC launched the Black & Minoritised Women's Fund and we are so pleased to be able to support the Black and minoritised led-by and for women’s sector (charities and groups that exist to support women) who have been disproportionately impacted by Covid-19 with the core grants it needs to deliver critical services at this time.

We are delighted to announce that the following organisations have received £10,000 core grants to support their vital work.

• Complete Woman CIC 
  • Based in Burmantofts Leeds, Complete Woman's main objectives are to equip, strengthen, empower, and educate women of all ages in-order for them to discover their purpose and fulfil their potential. Their activities provide benefit to new migrant, deprived and marginalised communities through practical and workable solutions that make a difference in solving the pressing challenges that women face today.

• Dostiyo Asian Women 
  • Dostiyo aims to provide the highest quality services to Asian communities for the benefit of Asian women their families.

• United Women Affiliation 
  • United women Affiliation are a Sheffield based organisation working to address preventable social determinants of health and to improve quality of life for marginalised women. Their focus is to address social isolation, improve social well-being, ameliorate social hardship through provision of targeted information and awareness, education, and looking for entrepreneurs' opportunities for women to build their financial capacity, better their lives, and meet their dreams. 

• Nottingham Muslim Women's Network
  • Nottingham Muslim Women’s Network (NMWN) is an advocacy and campaigning organisation that works to improve the social justice and equality for Muslim women and girls. NMWN find out about the experiences of Muslim women and girls through research and our drop in enquiries. NMWN provide free legal advice surgeries on Domestic Abuse, Sexual Exploitation, Forced Marriages and FGM in partnership with a local Law firm and also a drop in service currently through our telephone lines on issues affecting Muslim women.

• Apna Haq
  • Apna Haq which stands for ‘Your rights’ is a Black and Minoritised women led by and for organisation providing support to Black and minoritised women and girls facing issues of all forms of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG). Apna Haq have developed particular expertise around forms of violence that disproportionately impact on Black & minoritised women and girls which alongside domestic violence include forced marriage and honour based violence. Apna Haq also specialises on leading on the unique experiences of black & minoritised women around Child Sexual Exploitation and other forms of sexual abuse. Our work involves many diverse communities in Rotherham including: Chinese, Thai, Iranian, African, Roma, Bengali, Caribbean, Indian, Yemeni, Pakistani, and others.

• PHOEBE
  • PHOEBE aims to support women and children from Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, and migrant communities living in Suffolk experiencing poverty, isolation, low self-esteem, inaccessibility to public funds, lack of educational opportunities, and domestic abuse. PHOEBE runs counselling sessions and offers legal and immigration support, ESOL classes, and self-esteem workshops to them.  PHOEBE is also committed to raising community awareness regarding the stigmatisation of BME victims of domestic violence. They address maternity risks faced by women from Black and Asian backgrounds by providing them counselling and life coaching services, education and training courses, assistance in accessing healthcare and support groups. PHOEBE also runs self-esteem projects for young girls. Another ongoing project - You Can’t Break Me project, addresses the disadvantages and inequalities faced by black and minoritised women during their time in prison and on probation. PHOEBE is based in Suffolk.

• Roshini Sheffield Asian Women's Resource Centre
  • Roshni (which means light in Urdu) was established in 1992 by a group of women committed to addressing the needs and aspirations of South Asian women living and working in Sheffield. Roshini's aim is the empowerment of vulnerable South Asian women from such disadvantaged backgrounds and circumstances. They achieve this by providing a wide range of cultural and language specific services and activities that engage disadvantaged women and provide them with opportunities to identify their own needs, create their own solutions and make their own choices.

• Deaf Ethnic Women's Association
  • Deaf Ethnic Women’s Association is a national organisation run and controlled by Deaf women from Ethnic minority groups. DEWA provides a range of support and empowers BME Deaf women to have choice and control, be active and be successful in all aspects of their lives without compromising their identity.
    We provide workshops which are fully accessible in British Sign Language and captioning on a range of topics including financial empowerment, health and wellbeing and legal rights. They also run one-to-one drop in services where women can access support from an Advocate around legal or financial matters with the support of a BSL interpreter when required.

• Black Women Let Loose Theatre Company 
  • Black Women Let Loose aims to promote a world where black women and girls can see their experiences consistently reflected in a multitude of ways in theatre and other art forms. Black Women Let Loose provide theatre performances for Black and Minority Ethnic women as well as other audiences, primarily in Bristol and the UK. They present realistic stories which entertain, inform and inspire audiences to challenge stereotypes and deepen their understanding of diversity issues.

• Prosper Life Initiatives CIC
  • Prosper Life Initiatives works to support & empower women & their families through life skills training to be sustainable & make long term improvements in their financial and general well-being. They aim to tackle underlying causes of poverty & identify practical initiatives that can improve the lives of those at high risk of poverty. Prosper Life Initiatives encourage migrant women to explore & tap into unutilized skills & qualifications to boost their productivity & employability and increase income. They support orientation & integration of migrant women with no informal support networks around them by providing a safe space to engage and connect with others.
    
    
• Bristol & Avon Chinese Women's Group
  • The Bristol and Avon Chinese Women's Group (BACWG) aims to relieve sickness, hardship and distress by providing assistance, advice, representation, and services for Chinese women and their families within our coverage area; advance education and communication between the Chinese community and the local community through educational, social and cultural activities; and assist in the providing facilities and leisure activities for Chinese women and their families.

• Refugee Women's Association
  • Refugee Women’s Association was set up to empower and enable refugee, migrant and asylum-seeking women with their journey to integration. We stand up for their rights and ensure they receive fair and equal access to services, facilities and provisions.

• Hull Sisters
  • Hull Sisters is a specialist women’s organisation, run by-and-for Black and minoritised women. Over the last 10 years, Hull Sisters has provided women only services in a supportive environment for disadvantaged women from all backgrounds with a focus on Black and minoritised women. 

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Women’s Resource Centre (WRC) is a national charity committed to working towards human-rights by supporting and understanding small specialist women’s groups and charities. Through delivering programmes, creating networking opportunities and by campaigning and influencing decision-makers, the work that WRC does is essential to ensure a diverse and thriving sector that achieves the best outcomes for women.