Driving Employment with Survivors R Us
With COVID-19 causing a dramatic increase in unemployment, domestic violence, homelessness, and mental health issues, many individuals are left in the dark and have trouble accessing food, shelter or even just a bit of support. We are proud to have partnered with community organisation Survivors R Us and donated laptops for use by the local community.
Survivors R Us are a non-for-profit charity and benevolent institution operating in Cardiff that supports the fight against domestic violence, homelessness, and unemployment. They are able to help people of all ages through their counselling services, discount food warehouse and op-shop which sells pre-loved and handmade items crafted by their volunteers.
We spoke to our Regional Manager Amy Osborne about partnering with such a great organisation and how it has mutually benefitted AimBig and Survivors R Us.
“We were first introduced to Survivors R Us at a networking breakfast, where we engaged with the staff to see where there were gaps in support for people looking for work. It was revealed that there was no assistance for those who were homeless and needed to improve their situation, and also for people fleeing domestic violence looking to support themselves through finding work.
We were able to provide a number of laptops and are organising employability skills training once a week to support these individuals that have faced hardship back into the workplace. In addition, we engaged with a number of volunteers that have had previous hiring or employment services experience to assist with teaching people how to prepare for employment, whether that be updating their resume or applying for work.
Above and beyond employment, these laptops can be used by individuals updating or viewing legal documents in relation to ADVO cases, assisting homeless children with school assignments and studying and supporting Survivors R Us volunteers in accessing the information they need to support their community.”
Since COVID-19, the team at Survivors R Us have seen a 300% increase in members of the community needing assistance. In addition, on a weekly basis, there are upward of 4 cars of families who are homeless, living in their cars and looking for support. For members of the community looking to remain anonymous, ID, personal information and health care cards are not necessary. The team is determined to help and acknowledge that it can be triggering for victims to identify themselves at the risk of being found.
The endless support the team provides is imperative to the safety of the public, whereby it is a safe haven for anyone to attend, especially for those experiencing domestic violence. We are proud to have donated laptops and provided other resources to help individuals that come to Survivors R Us get ahead.
