History of BWA

Birmingham & Solihull Women’s Aid is committed to providing safe, welcoming, women centred services for women and children affected by the experience of domestic violence, rape and sexual abuse. Since our inception in 1979 our service has continued to expand and develop in response to the needs of women and children from the diverse communities of Birmingham and Solihull.

Birmingham & Solihull Women’s Aid grew, as did many refuge groups, out of the women’s movement of the 1970’s. At the time there was no provision for women and children who were trying to escape domestic violence. In the late 1970’s in Birmingham, a group of women created a “squat” in an empty building and made this space available for women fleeing abuse. Although this refuge was by no means official, local housing workers and police referred women and their children to the squat.

In 1980, Birmingham Women’s Aid’s first official refuge was opened in the south of the city. The building was owned by what is now Focus Housing Association, and the project was managed by Birmingham Women’s Aid . The refuge, which has five bedrooms and shared cooking and bathroom facilities, is still managed by Birmingham & Solihull Women’s Aid today.

Over the next ten years  Birmingham Women’s Aid  gained funding for paid staff but volunteers were always key to service provision. In the early days Birmingham Women’s Aid ran as a collective but by the end of the 1980’s it had developed a management structure. Because of this, Birmingham Women’s Aid was not able to become a full member of the Women’s Aid Federation England (WAFE) until more recently when membership criteria changed.

In 1992, Birmingham Women’s Aid opened a second, newly built refuge on the north side of the city. This refuge, owned by Midland Area Housing Association, has space for 13 women, plus children, and is comprised of self-contained flats and bedsits. The refuge also has a communal lounge and laundry facilities as well as a designated children’s room. Birmingham Women’s Aid has employed specialist children’s workers on and off over the years and continually since 1994. A Housing Worker, Aftercare Worker and Asian Project Worker have joined the team in recent years.

In 1996, building on the success of the refuge provision, it was possible to secure funding to develop a counselling and support centre, providing high quality face to face counselling and a telephone helpline. We have since been able to build upon the success of this project to offer a variety of support services to develop our holistic approach including group work, family support, outreach, aftercare and telephone helpline.

In 2001, BWA commenced work on improving the response to domestic violence of healthcare workers, in a research project funded by the Home Office Crime Reduction Programme.

In 2002, BWA opened a new refuge, in partnership with Focus Housing, with space for 10 women and their children. This refuge has a flat and communal areas which are designed to accommodate disabled women and children. 

Now, in 2006, the organisation has officially changed its name and status to Birmingham & Solihull Women’s Aid, and now offers Floating Support and Refuge services in the borough of Solihull.