FORWARD provides advice, one-to-one support and signposting to other services for women and girls affected by any form of violence. We provide advice and support on domestic abuse, sexual violence, female genital mutilation, forced marriage, and other harmful practices. We won’t judge you. We will help you to understand your options and provide you with the support that you need.
We also welcome for you to share with us any additional support you may need. If you, or someone you know, need support or simply want someone to talk to, please contact us now. All our support and counselling services are now also available online and via telephone.
Call us: 0208 960 4000
Email us: [email protected]
Our services
Emotional support
- One-to-one emotional support with a specialist psychotherapist
- Group support
- Help to access counselling and other relevant services
Access to specialist services
- Help to access FGM specialist clinics, including accompaniment and support in translation (Arabic, Somali, Amharic, French and others). List of specialist clinics in the UK
- Help to access other specialist services e.g legal services or advice
- Casework support including accompaniment to social services
- Referring and signposting to English for Speakers of Other Language (ESOL), IT and other education/training opportunities
Referrals and contact:
If you want to access one of our other services you can self-refer or be referred by an organisation or your GP by completing our referral form and email it to [email protected].
Providing safe spaces for African and minority ethnic women
Our monthly coffee mornings provide a safe space for women to share, discuss and learn from each other’s experiences. We run these informal sessions alongside specialists. We discuss important topics – including FGM, mental health, domestic violence, reproductive health and family law. Other topics discussed based on suggestions and outcomes from group discussions:
- The impact of domestic violence on children’s mental health
- Dynamics between genders in the community
- Intergenerational relationships
- A woman’s ‘value’ in the family, home and community
- Sex and sexuality
If you are in an emergency
In an emergency, or if you or someone you know is an immediate risk of violence or FGM, call the police on 999. If you are unable to talk, you can make a Silent Call from your mobile to the police by dialing 999– then 55. This will alert the police that you are in an emergency. Here is more guidance on how to make a silent call.
Other services that can help you
- Your Local Social Services Department – are able to protect you or provide support, you can contact them through your local council
- Your Local Police Child Protection Unit – are able to protect you or provide support, you can contact them through your local police station. If you are in London you can also contact the Metropolitan Police Child Abuse Investigation Command on 020 7161 2888.
