Eaves awarded National Lottery funding for exiting prostitution project

Eaves’ London Exiting Advocacy (LEA) Project was awarded £491,825 of National Lottery funding today.

LEA has been running since 2009, and helps women who want to leave prostitution by providing support to tackle immediate issues such as their housing situation, or mental and physical health problems. In the long-term, the project aims to help service users gain training and education opportunities to empower them to gain independence. Project workers will help individuals to create a tailored support plan, drop-in sessions will be offered and outreach work will deliver practical and emotional support in areas where women are working.

In addition, training will be developed and delivered through eight workshops across England, with the aim of helping professionals to support women to leave prostitution in other areas of the country.

It is estimated that tens of thousands of women in the UK are involved in prostitution but there are currently no accurate statistics available because it is largely a hidden issue.

Heather Harvey, Research and Development Manager at Eaves said:

Eaves is delighted to be able to develop our work in support of those women who wish to exit prostitution. Women in prostitution may reach a point where they don’t want to do it anymore, for various reasons. This project is for women who have decided they wish to leave but need some support in doing so. For those women who need it we can help them deal with practical issues like housing, independent finances, the impact of criminal records, and rebuilding contact and relationships. Where appropriate we can support and/or refer women for help around issues such as addiction, emotional well being, self-care and self-esteem. This funding will help us to be able to support women making an important change in their lives and often the lives of their children.