Wolverhampton theatre brings in thousands for city refuge

Wolverhampton Grand Theatre pledged its support for The Haven by talking to its audiences about the charity's work.

It spent the first week of January spreading the word and collecting cash for the city refuge, gathering £2,812 for families in need.

Fundraising manager John Harrison said the Lichfield Street theatre also donated 72 tickets for women and children to enjoy pantomime Jack and the Beanstalk.

He added: "The Grand Theatre is delighted to have helped raise such a wonderful amount for The Haven.

"We are extremely grateful to our generous patrons who donated to support such a good cause in our local community.

"The Grand aims to improve the local community by putting education, creativity and a passion for the arts at its heart.

"Theatre-going provides an important escape from real life for people, whilst also developing their cultural education and a deeper connection to the arts.

"It is with this in mind that The Grand also offered free tickets to The Haven so those in greatest need could enjoy a break seeing our wonderful Jack and the Beanstalk pantomime."

The Haven, which first launched in 1973 and is one of the largest refuge providers in the UK, offers a range of support services to women and children across the city.

This includes providing 63 units of accommodation in secure refuges across Wolverhampton and a 24-hour domestic abuse helpline.

Its team also provides training courses to help business working with women and children to understand signs of abuse.

Last year, the charity received royal recognition after winning the Princess Royal Training Award and the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service.

Jade Secker, senior community fundraiser at The Haven, said some of the families supported had never stepped into a theatre before the generous offer from the city venue.

She added: "We are so overwhelmed with the support we have received from The Grand Theatre.

"£2,800 is an incredible amount that will make such a difference to our service users at The Haven and also ensure vital services ran by the charity are able to continue throughout 2018.

"What’s more, the wonderful donation of tickets really did offer women and children we support the opportunity to rebuild bonds that may have been broken between mother and child due to the abuse they have been through and gives them the chance to make precious happy memories together.

"This simply wouldn’t be possible without the support of people like the team at The Grand Theatre – we are incredibly grateful.”