Help create a sanctuary for survivors like Grace
This page shares the real experience of a domestic abuse survivor. Her name and identifying details have been changed for her safety, but her story is told in her own words. The full story is available on the Cranstoun website and includes references to physical, emotional and sexual violence, which some readers may find upsetting.
Grace endured years of unimaginable abuse before finding safety in a Cranstoun refuge. Now, she dreams of a space where her children can play again. This Christmas, you can help transform an empty patch of garden into a sanctuary for families rebuilding their lives.
A qualified doctor and mother of two daughters, Grace devoted her life to helping others and nurturing her children. But for years, she endured a marriage defined by fear and control to keep her family together.
‘I was in a bad marriage,’ Grace told us, ‘but I was always told a child must have both their parents involved.’ Leaving her husband felt impossible, so she stayed.
Grace knew she had to escape to protect herself and her children. One day, with her husband at work, she packed whatever she could carry and fled to her daughter’s school. Teachers had seen the signs of abuse and now, finally in a safe environment, Grace could share for the first time what was happening behind closed doors. With social services involved, the trio moved from hotel to hotel, before an independent domestic violence adviser (IDVA) helped her family to finally settle into a refuge managed by Cranstoun.
The refuge is a lifeline for six women, including Grace, and their children. Here, they find safety and community, living among people who understand their experiences. With support from the Cranstoun team, the refuge’s residents access support with mental health, housing, and finding the pathway to recovery and independence.
Grace calls the refuge her training ground. She says, ‘it’s a place where I can get myself together to face the world again’.
Outside, the refuge has a private and secure garden, but this neglected space could be so much more. Right now, it’s bare: a shabby patch of weed-strewn grass, a cracked slab of concrete with a border of stinging nettles, and a single picnic table for everyone who calls the refuge home. For children who’ve lost so much, and parents coping with trauma, the transformation of this space could be life-changing.Â
With your help, Cranstoun can turn this into a vibrant outdoor space where families can heal together.
Read Grace’s story and donate to the appeal at: https://cranstoun.org/support-our-work/donate/christmas-appeal-2025/
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This blog was published by Cranstoun