Women come to us in a crisis state with very little or often no clothes and belongings. During 2007- 8 The Haven re-homed over 500 women and children back in the local community. The Resettlement Worker provides practical support to women and their children to aid positive integration, however basic home essentials which we all take for granted can pose major problems. A grant of £4000 will help us provide ‘starter packs’ consisting of: inflatable bed/ kettle/toaster/ linen/ crockery/ curtains/ lamp/iron and ironing board/microwave which will be distributed to clients leaving our hostels and being re-homed in the community. Not all women are eligible for community care grants and when they are offered a property there are limited time scales (confirming tenancy on same day of viewing). Those who are eligible can wait over 2 months, with not all applications accepted or funding the amount needed. Grants do not cover ‘luxuries’ e.g. microwaves which really are necessities when there is no other way of cooking food. For the majority of women the little money they have is allocated to the repayment of debt, often caused by an abusive and controlling ex partner. They may experience difficulty in budgeting as often they are in control financially for the first time. The immediate period after leaving the hostel is a critical time; women with children often choose to return to violent partners rather than living in poverty. Women who have experienced horrific abuse, who have made a positive step forward in accessing help, are left to sleep on floors with no carpets or make food with no facilities. There is little justice here. The real difference this grant would make is putting an end to a cycle of abuse, relieving stress by providing practical support at a time when women can concentrate on rebuilding their lives, finding employment and making a house a home. The number of women resettled and the number of packs distributed will be recorded and presented in quarterly performance returns at management/trustee meetings. Feedback from women will be collated in case studies. Project will commence as soon as funds are received. Each ‘starter pack’ will be £200 with 20 women and their children benefitting. We do not have the funds to provide these due to financial constraints; however fundraising as a priority supports many additional needs for those women and children who access our services. We previously received trust funding piloting the packs across 6 months. The pilot proved successful, feedback from women was positive. We will continue to seek funding for this project to enable our women to have better life chances within the community.