Meet the staff: Julia

My name is Julia Miller and I’m the Senior Development Worker at Healthy Valleys. I’ve been working here for 11 years now!  Today I’ve been interviewing for 2 new positions within Healthy Valleys for the Lanarkshire Domestic Abuse Response (LDAR) project which starts in December.

The LDAR project will benefit women from Lanarkshire, who have experienced domestic abuse and it is funded by the BIG Lottery for three years.

It’s a multi-agency project led by NHS Lanarkshire’s Ending Violence and Abuse service (EVA) and partners include various Citizen Advice Bureaus, North and South Lanarkshire’s Women’s Aid, Lanarkshire Rape Crisis, North Lanarkshire Violence against Women Group, Door Way Partnership South Lanarkshire, NLC Housing and Social Work Services, SL Housing and Technical Services and Healthy Valleys.  Healthy Valleys will provide complementary therapies for women across Lanarkshire.

The women referred into the LDAR service will have access to

• Specialised Advocacy Workers, who will support the women to achieve their goals and aspirations through practical and emotion support and will include improving networks, reducing isolation, improving confidence and self esteem and possibly employment opportunities through volunteering and training opportunities
• Specialised Housing and Welfare Officers, who will help the women on housing, welfare and benefit issues and solutions
• Specialised Complementary Therapists, who will help the women relax and feel less stressed and work on various health issues such as tension, aches, pains, old injuries, depression and imsomnia, to name a few.
• Women will have access to new GPS alarms for thir homes which will help women feel safer in their home and they will get an immediate response from Police Scotland if they feel threatened
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Over the three years, LDAR will support 480 women affected by domestic violence and their children.  The overall outcomes of the project are;

• Women who have experienced domestic abuse will have improved access to practical and emotional support and will feel better supported
• Women who have experienced domestic abuse will have increased/improved access to specialised housing, welfare and money advice and support enabling them to access a home of their choice
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I feel that this is a much needed service for the women affected by domestic violence in Lanarkshire and I’m really pleased that Healthy Valleys is providing such a valuable part to this project and I look forward to welcoming the two new staff members recruited today, Carol and Jenny.

Tomorrow is a new day and brings another task - funding applications!