Tag: fundraising

Students at Surrey school raise more than £2,000 for Savera UK

Students at Charterhouse School in Surrey have fundraised more than £2,000 for Savera UK to help end ‘honour’-based abuse and harmful practices.

Boarding house pupils Sasha Schukken, 16, Phoebe Hornett, 16, Alessandra Barroso Kosanovic, 17, Tatiana Barroso Kosanovic, 17, Isabella Duc, 16, Alexandra Oerlemans, 17 and Bea Harrall, 17, hosted a cheese and wine event for parents and fellow pupils where they educated them on Savera UK’s mission.

Savera UK is a national charity working to end ‘honour’-based abuse and other harmful practices, including female genital mutilation, forced marriage, virginity testing and breast ironing. The charity safeguards and advocates on behalf of those at risk while tackling the root-cause of the issues through campaigning and awareness-raising.

The students explained they heard about Savera UK from their House Master and other pupils in their house. Speaking to Savera UK the students said: “We thought it aligned with our views and that it was an important message to speak about and fundraise for.”

The team, who raised a total of £2,114.45 for the charity, took entrance fees for the event in their school hall. They also made a poster and explained Savera UK’s mission to attendees. They said: “It was a great experience to organise an event and have it go smoothly. Raising the money for a good cause also made the experience more gratifying.”

Speaking about their favourite part of the event, the team said: “Setting up the event for the parents was a great experience.” The team “had fun setting up the cheese boards” and organising the fundraising event.

Asked if they would encourage others to take part in fundraising, the team said: “I would encourage it as it creates leadership opportunities while raising money for a good cause that you believe in.

“Having a fundraising activity going very smoothly is also very satisfying because it’s a very good visual representation of our hard work. Raising a good sum of money also makes it worthwhile because we do make an impact with our donations and makes the whole experience fulfilling.”

Afrah Qassim, Founder and CEO of Savera UK, said: “I am overwhelmed by this generous donation from the pupils at Charterhouse School. As a charity we are dependent on the generosity of others in order to continue our work to end ‘honour’-based abuse and harmful practices. This money will not only help us in safeguarding and advocating on behalf of those at risk, but in our mission to campaign for a brighter future where these practices are no longer carried out.

“On behalf of the whole Savera UK team we would like to say a huge thank you to Sasha, Phoebe, Alessanfra, Tatiana, Isabella, Alexandra, Bea and all those who attended the event and donated to Savera UK.”

If you are a school, or a young person who wants to get involved in Savera UK, take a look at Savera UK Youth! Our Youth programme holds creative projects and campaigns throughout the year to help develop young people’s skills and encourage you to become part of the team raising awareness of harmful practices. To support Savera UK’s work, find out how your donation can make a difference by clicking here.

SAE Liverpool students host fundraiser for Savera UK

Liverpool students support Savera UK with fundraiser gig at The Jacaranda Club

Savera UK is excited to be supported as the chosen charity for a fundraising event taking place in Liverpool.

Students of Music Business at SAE Liverpool have grouped together to create Dead Sound Collective, a live music promotions company, hosting their debut fundraiser in the heart of the city centre.

From 7.30pm on Monday 22nd November in aid of Savera UK there will be a night of poetry, music and spoken word at The Jacaranda Club on Slater Street. All the money raised will go to support survivors of ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA), forced marriage, female genital mutilation (FGM) and other harmful practices.

Thank you to SAE Liverpool students for choosing to support Savera UK
Thank you to SAE Liverpool students for choosing to support Savera UK

Among the line-up are poets Olive and Madelaine Kinsella and musician Aron, whose style is rooted in 80s synth-pop. Singer, songwriter and producer Niki Kand will also perform her “indie-lo fi dream pop” which “offers escapism and provides an insight into the therapeutic world she has constructed for herself”.

Niki, who grew up in Tehran, Iran, said she was heavily influenced by western pop growing up and began expressing herself through music after moving to Kuala Lumpur. Also scheduled to perform is local singer-songwriter Eleanor Nelly, whose sound encompasses country, blues and rock ‘n’ roll, taking influence from My Chemical Romance, The Beatles and Sandi Thom.

About the event, Savera UK founder and CEO Afrah Qassim said: “We’re very thankful to the students for choosing Savera UK as the charity they wish to raise money for. By buying a ticket to this event your money will go directly towards supporting survivors of ‘honour’-based abuse and other harmful practices.”

Megan Gelder, Event Director, said: “Dead Sound Collective goes further than just a university project, we wanted to create a safe space for marginalised individuals, especially with all the crazy stuff the world is experiencing right now.

“No one should feel alone in their hardships and we believe music and poetry are incredibly therapeutic ways to express oneself. With this in mind, we set out to find the perfect organisation to support, and who better to partner with than Savera UK. We were amazed by the work they do and wanted to celebrate this with our local community.”

Savera UK would like to thank Megan, Emil Klaus, Marketing and Finance Executive, Natalie Lloyd, Branding and Venue Styling, Sarah Dubery, Technical and Stage Director and Rakiya Gul, Social Media and Promotions Director.

If you would like to attend you can buy limited-time discounted tickets by clicking here. Tickets will also be available on the night.

Help us fund safe therapies

Help survivors of ‘honour-based abuse access safe therapies

Help us fund safe therapies
Help us fund safe therapies for Savera UK clients

At Savera UK we are committed to ensuring we provide the best possible support to survivors of ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA), forced marriage, female genital mutilation (FGM) and other harmful practices.

We provide a safe environment for those at risk of these practices regardless of their age, gender, sexuality or culture. Anyone can be affected by HBA, which is abuse perpetrated in the name of so-called ‘honour’. The abuse carried out can range from isolating/imprisoning an individual and ostracising them from a community to being killed, or what is known as a so-called ‘honour’ killing.

The people who are at risk of HBA and other culturally specific harmful practices may be vulnerable as a result and in need of specialist support from professionals who have an in-depth understanding of the issues and the effect they can have on survivors.

At Savera UK our clients are at the forefront of all our work, and when seeking donations we want to make sure the money is being used in a way that addresses the needs of survivors and helps them process their experiences.

That is why we’re asking for your help.

We continue to improve our services based on feedback from our clients, who have expressed a wish for us to expand the emotional support we offer by providing therapies and working with specialist therapist professionals who have a good understanding of HBA, forced marriage, FGM and other harmful practices.

Savera UK wants to provide clients with services that actively work to ensure cultural sensitivity and demonstrate an understanding of the issues our clients may be facing. These specialist therapies will involve modern and alternative therapies including art, drama and music, which have been proven to help clients explore difficult memories. Importantly these types of therapies often don’t require a lot of talking, meaning those clients who do not speak English as a first language are easily able to engage.

These therapy sessions will be focused on trauma and attachment, with a particular focus on the relationships between parents and children which can become negatively impacted by harmful practices. We hope to aid the rebuilding of relationships that have been affected by these practices during Theraplay sessions. Theraplay is a form of therapy that involves the parent and child being guided to form positive attachments through patterns of playful, healthy interaction.

We can’t provide these supportive therapies to our clients without your help.

To be able to conduct these sessions for clients with professional therapists, we need to raise £1,500, which will then be matched by the National Emergencies Trust Local Action Fund.

Donate to the fundraiser here: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/saverauk01

Please note, this fundraiser closes on 15th December