Our crèche service is a crucial complement to the services offered by the organisation. Many of our service users are single and/or working mothers that have no access to childcare - our crèche allows mothers to access advice and support whilst their children play safely. Providing a safe and fun environment for their children allows LAWRS to offer a better and more appropriate service to women without their children becoming affected by the issues women bring to us. This is especially important, since among our projects, we offer support for domestic violence survivors, both in advocacy and counselling and it is very important that women have a place to leave their children while they get the support they really need. Our crèche has toys and play materials and principally caters for children aged under five; it has been satisfactorily inspected by our Local Authority. We strive to offer play activities focused on children’s developmental and learning needs. Due to the myriad difficulties faced by LA women in this country (low-paid work, language barriers, abuse, lack of knowledge of educational system), they are often unable to respond to all the demands of their children’s upbringing. Therefore, the crèche also offers support, guidance and information to mothers in their parenting role. Our staff are well versed on child protection issues, with the crèche coordinator playing an advocacy role to ensure this is addressed organisation-wide. All our crèche staff are CRB checked. Our crèche is well-stocked with art and play materials, books and toys in order to offer the children a productive and fun learning experience. £5,000 would allow us to pay for a sessional crèche coordinator’s costs for one year.