For more than 25 years, Keri has specialised in domestic abuse, violent crime, mental health, and trauma. Her PhD focused on domestic abuse risk assessment, working directly with Merseyside Police to shape their response processes. Some people spend their careers helping others assess risk. Far fewer choose to face their own fear head-on to fund the work they believe in.
This March, consultant forensic psychologist Dr Keri Nixon is abseiling down Liverpool Football Club’s iconic Anfield stadium to raise £1,000 for Savera UK. Keri has never done anything like this before. She tried a small abseil as a child and has avoided heights ever since. She’s choosing to face that fear now.
Why a psychologist who understands risk is taking one
Throughout her career, she’s worked on cases involving domestic abuse, ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA) and harmful practices, helping victims, assessing risk, and intervening where the stakes are high.
This work requires nerve, precision, and the willingness to call harm for what it is. Keri brings both professional expertise and lived experience, shaped by an unshakeable belief that everyone deserves safety and choice.
Why she’s backing Savera UK
Keri has worked alongside Savera UK since the very beginning, and she has seen, first-hand, what ‘honour’-based abuse and harmful practices look like when no one steps in, and what it costs when intervention comes too late.
Savera UK exists to change that. The team works with survivors, people at risk or experiencing ‘honour’-based abuse and harmful practices, which include female genital mutilation, forced marriage, and conversion ‘therapy’.
Every pound raised through Keri’s challenge helps make that work possible, ensuring people are believed, protected, and given the chance to begin their ‘savera’, a new beginning. You can donate to Keri’s fundraiser here.
A 50th birthday present with meaning
Outside her work, Keri is a mum, partner, daughter, and devoted Liverpool Football Club fan. Her favourite player is the club captain, Virgil van Dijk and she hopes to get his attention through this fundraiser!
This abseil was a birthday gift from her mum, someone who knows that while Keri fears heights, she never backs down from a challenge. She’ll take it on alongside her daughter. Her initial reaction to the challenge? “Oh sh**.” Followed immediately by: “I WILL do this.”
Why in March?
International Women’s Day and No More Week, a global initiative raising awareness of domestic abuse and sexual violence, are held in March. It’s a powerful month to raise awareness of domestic abuse, ‘honour’-based abuse and harmful practices. Many people and organisations start important conversations during this time about violence against women and girls, but Keri is channelling her commitment into tangible action through her fundraising efforts.
Keri’s impact
Keri plans to fundraise £1,000 for Savera UK. Every pound raised helps a survivor access a specialist service when they need it most, which can save a person’s life. It funds the interventions that help people leave dangerous situations and find their ‘savera’.
Support Keri’s challenge
Your donation helps Savera UK reach more people at risk and provide the expert intervention that can save a person’s life.
