The Scarlet Centre offers advice and support to women affected by any form of violence including domestic violence, sexual violence, homelessness and prostitution. The centre aims to help women get back to work and live independently by providing counselling, befriending schemes and workshops on topics such as CV writing, improving self-esteem and healthy eating. The centre can also provide support around accessing benefits, healthcare, education, housing and legal rights.

This 'one-stop-shop' approach is a highly effective means of supporting women, because it recognises that experiences of violence rarely exist in isolation, and that in order to recover, women usually need assistance in more than one aspect of their lives.

Research has estimated the cost of violence against women in the UK to be around a staggering £40 billion per annum. The Greater London Authority estimates the cost to London's boroughs to be around £5.6 billion per annum. It is more cost-effective to the economy to run one central service, with one set of running costs, than ten or more separate services. Our entire Scarlet Centre service costs just £500,000 a year to run.