After a few years of working with a night time van outreach Streetwise , our founder wanted to do more to support the women they were meeting. In 2012, together with a couple of amazing volunteers, the first Pearls Drop-In started.
Over the next few years, volunteers from a charity we were connected with and local charities, organisations and faith groups who helped us run women’s groups, and offered one-on-one support for women. We built relationships with women and other services and began to offer connection, help through individual circumstances, emotional and pastoral support.
SOme things we've done
We have had a lot of amazing times over the past few years. Here are just some of the things we've done:
Supported women to pursue different interests including well-being, trips out, fitness classes, walks, picnics, art groups, AA/NA meetings.
Supported women with different needs including getting to health appointments, other appointments, court hearings, through crisis like homelessness, assault, DV and sickness, with other everyday needs that come up and when women want to get into recovery or exit sex working.
Trips out to Wales, Festivals, beaches, Walks & Picnics.
Pamper Nights with hairdressers, massage therapists and our team doing manicures, pedicures, facials and other pampering.
Special event meals for Christmas and other events through the year.
Where we are now
From 2020 we started to work much more closely with the Streetwise team which was now a project of Our House Community Hub CIC, working in partnership to support some of the most vulnerable women we met. This relationship grew and in February 2023 we officially joined Our House and officially became one of their projects. We're so excited about this new partnership as we are already able to provide better support to women as we are part of a bigger team and have big plans for the future together!
We're now looking to grow our team of volunteers to continue and develop our work, to expand our services and to help support our women (and more women) consistently and well.
Do get in touch if you would like to join our team and be a part of our story!