On 9 June, St Clement’s Church in Worcester were delighted to welcome Sue Coleman, CEO of West Mercia Women’s Aid and Judith Grubb, President of Worcester Diocese Mothers’ Union.
Vicar Sarah Cotrill reports on the meeting:
“Sue spoke first, telling us more about the issues around domestic abuse and what we can do to help victims. There are many definitions offered for what constitutes abuse, but Sue summed it up when she said abuse occurs “whenever home is not a safe place to be!” She then spoke about the most extreme cases - extreme, but sadly not rare; every week two women in Britain are killed by a husband or partner!
After sharing some individual stories with us, Sue answered the question “What can we do?” by stressing the importance of listening to - and believing - disclosures of abuse. Our job is to point victims to organisations which can then help them.
We can - and will - continue, as a church to hold victims in our prayers and Sue will keep in touch with practical suggestions of ways in which we can support West Mercia Women’s Aid.
Judith Grubb then presented us with our Bronze Award under the Mothers’ Union RISE UP campaign for which we had to:
- have the endorsement of the PCC;
- commit to praying regularly for victims of domestic abuse;
- display a poster, giving details of where help can be found;
- invite a speaker from a relevant charity or organisation to give a talk about their work and how we can support them.
Having fulfilled all these criteria, St Clement’s has become the first church in Worcester Diocese to achieve this award!”
