Charlotte is a young parent with two boys aged one and six months. During her first pregnancy, Charlotte found herself in an abusive relationship. She suffered verbal abuse and was often threatened with physical violence. The arguments got worse as the pregnancy progressed. During these arguments her partner would tell her that she treated him badly and he’d be better off in a relationship with one of her friends. Due to this, she lost all her self-confidence. When a friend noticed what was happening; they supported Charlotte to leave her partner. Fortunately for Charlotte, her family really pulled through for her and she felt supported. 

After the split, her ex-partner tried to initiate relationships with Charlotte’s friends. Having confided in them about some of the details of her relationship her friends ignored him. When he found out she had shared details of their relationship, he started spreading malicious rumours. It took Charlotte a while to recover from the upset this caused. 

Initially Charlotte was supported by the Valley House Young Parent Floating Support service. She was really worried about malicious reports that were being sent to social services and how they could affect her and her child. Staff provided reassurance and Charlotte then moved into accommodation at Valley House for her safety. 

Valley House have supported Charlotte in all areas of life.  Teaching her about parenting, money and budgeting. She is proud of the fact that she is now able to pay rent and council tax on time. Charlotte also joined the Life Skills course at Valley House. Occasionally, she struggled to attend these sessions due to social anxiety. However, when she couldn’t make it to a session her support workers would complete a 1 to 1 session, to help her catch up. Charlotte is much more confident and would love to help others who are going through a similar situation. She feels that she’d be able to give them advice on where they can get help from and how they can help themselves. Charlotte is proud of herself, saying that despite the fact her pregnancy was ‘absolute hell’ she’s happy now. 

Note: Valley House shares real stories from the people we work with. If necessary, we use stock photographs and change some details to protect the identity of individuals.

For more Survivors Stories See: https://valleyhouse.org.uk/case-studies/

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Find out more about how Valley House can help – Domestic Abuse