Issued by City of York Council
The Rt Hon Lord Mayor of York Cllr Julie Gunnell is participating in and supporting a bag pack in aid of Independent Domestic Abuse Services (IDAS), one of the Lord Mayor’s charities for this Civic Year 2013-14.
The bag pack will take place at Foss Bank Sainsbury’s between 10 and 6pm on Friday 9 August, with the Lord Mayor present between 10am and 12 noon to support the fundraisers and help pack the bags of shoppers.
IDAS is a local charity which supports victims of domestic abuse and sexual violence. Domestic abuse affects up to 1 in 4 people and each year there are 3,000 reports of domestic violence made to the police in York alone.
The charity looks to provide a range of services to support victims of domestic abuse including Refuge accommodation for victims who need to escape and a helpline which is available to support residents throughout the week.
Last year the charity supported more than 500 families living in the York area and provided refuge accommodation to over 30 women and their children.
The Rt Hon Lord Mayor of York Cllr Julie Gunnell said: “I am delighted to support this fundraising event which looks to raise funds and awareness for this worthy cause.
“IDAS is a charity that is close to my heart which is why I selected it as one of my charities for the civic year.
“The charity offers support to residents in need and this bag pack goes a long way to raising funds to maintain the level of support that IDAS provides.”
Sarah Hill, Director of the Independent Domestic Abuse Service said: “As well as supporting victims of domestic abuse, we believe that children are the hidden victims of domestic violence and provide individual support to children and young people which is crucial to help them recover the negative impacts of abuse.
“However, this area of our work receives very little funding and we rely on donations and fundraising to be able to provide the service.
“This is why bag packs like the one on 9 August are crucial and I am incredibly grateful for the Lord Mayor supporting the charity and getting involved in helping us in such a hands on way.”
This content has not been created by YorkMix but by one of our trusted news sources. YorkMix is not responsible for the accuracy of the text.