Our Lady of Charity and Father Hudson's Society jointly run the Anawim project in Birmingham. The project provides support services to women and their children at its Centre and in the community.
Anawim's key objective is to help women overcome problems or obstacles that adversely affect their lives, helping them to achieve their goals and reach their full potential. This will greatly benefit the children of these women. Anawim undertake prison in-reach to HMP Foston Hall, HMP Drake Hall and HMP Eastwood Park and sometimes HMP Peterborough. They also offer support for women approaching release to help them prepare for life in the community and after release Anawim support women to re-engage with services, access benefits and resettle into the community. Women are encouraged to engage with the self esteem building courses and activities available at the Centre which are designed to enhance independence and chances of employment. The Re-Unite Programme, run in partnership with Midland Heart housing association, provides accommodation which enables women to resettle into the community with their children. Anawim supports this by working with Local Authorities and supporting women at case conferences and court hearings. Anawim also liaises with whoever has been the children's carer during the sentence. Supervised contact is available with aid of the centre's creche. Anawim run a Family Support Service as a vital part of their early intervention package which also receives referrals direct from Social Services and local children's centres. Anawim's Prison in-reach and Family Support workers work together to deliver parenting courses and to offer one to one support for the women. Anawim have produced a preliminary evaluation of their Mental Health Alternatives to Custody Project, which can be downloaded below. The report presents cost benefits of the service, as well as individual case stories demonstrating how the service supports women and their families.
Contact Anawim for more information.
E: referrals@anawim.co.uk T: 0121 440 5296
A: Balsall Heath Centre, 228 Mary Street, Balsall Heath, Birmingham B12 9RJ
W: http://www.anawim.co.uk/index.html
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