Time limited appeal reached milestone for charity
A charity which helps women and girls to flee domestic abuse successfully raised £10,480 in a single week. The money will be used as part of First Light’s crisis fund.
The team launched the appeal earlier in the month with the aim of raising £5000 in donations which could be match funded by the Big Give Match Fund campaign.
Domestic abuse will affect one in four women during their lifetime. Violence against women and girls has continued to rise over the past year. The charity explains that only 1.8% of UK grants from Trusts and Foundations are directed towards this cause.
Every year, First Light support thousands of women to make the brave decision to flee abusive relationships, including high risk families who are facing the most challenging moments of their lives.
The feedback from people for whom the charity has helped has been astounding. One user said they had just felt, ‘so low. I spent years thinking I would never leave, that I would die there. When I left, it was the beginning of another journey.’
The money raised for the crisis fund will mean that First Light can provide immediate support to those in need. This includes funding travel costs, shelter, clothing, electrical goods and moving costs.
The fund will also support with hidden costs that other funds don’t cover. This can even include the cost of a credit check to get a new tenancy agreement.
Reaching the £10,000 target
‘We are over the moon with the success of this year’s Big Give Match Fund campaign, having hit (and exceeded) our £10,000 target!’ says Anna Mitchell, Fundraising Officer at First Light.
‘We raised £10,480, and with the addition of Gift Aid, it made an incredible total of £11,104. We received donations from over 90 different people and companies, which really shows a fantastic amount of support.’
‘We want to say a huge thank you to everyone who supported this year’s campaign through their donations, fundraising activities, and by sharing the campaign on social media.’
‘Without the support of our charity partners, along with our amazing supporters and fundraisers, we wouldn’t have been able to do it.’
‘And a huge thank you to the Big Give for the opportunity to participate in such a great match funding campaign and to all the match funders who made this possible.’
Earlier this year, a group of runners raised thousands of pounds for the charity when they undertook the Plymouth Half Marathon. First Light was named Venton’s Charity of the Year at the start of the year following a public vote on social media.