More children and young people in Cumbria who have experienced sexual abuse or domestic violence will receive support from Safety Net.

This is a charity who have recently received a grant of £40,000 from Cumbria Freemasons. 

The funding will contribute toward the cost of a Young Persons Practitioner enabling 50 children and young people per year to receive support.

It’s estimated that around one in five children and young people are exposed to domestic abuse at some point in their childhood, and more than one in 20 have experienced sexual abuse, according to the NSPCC.

Over the last year, Safety Net has supported nearly 400 young clients across the county, through its specialist therapy services and its work with local schools. Over 80 per cent of these children reported improvement in their trauma symptoms as a direct result of this help, and 77 per cent reported improved health and wellbeing scores.

The funding will provide further tailored support, including art, play and talking therapies, enabling young clients to process the strong feelings and reactions associated with such trauma. It will also be used to provide additional support for young people in schools around healthy relationships.

Helen Davies, a Children’s and Young People’s Therapist at Safety Net said: “We’re very grateful to the Cumbria Freemasons for their generous grant. Working with children who have had such damaging experiences at an early age, through no fault of their own, requires highly skilled therapists with an expertise in this area.

"Each young client we work with receives up to 24 sessions of support, giving them the best possible chance of recovering and leading fulfilled lives in future. The funding will also be used to support our work in local schools, which has increased dramatically over the last year.”

Bill Bewley Head of Cumbrian Freemasons, said: “I’m really pleased we’ve been able to help Safety Net by funding specialist support for children and young people who are traumatised as a result of abuse.

"This is a very sensitive area and it’s vitally important that these young people get help so they can recover and live fulfilling lives in the future. It’s hugely important for the families and for society in general that this vital project is supported.”