Our Women
The Women’s Project at Recovering Justice is a network for women confronting the stark realities faced by women who use or have used drugs.
In a troubling trend highlighted by the Office for National Statistics, women’s deaths as a result of drug use have surged by 85% over the last decade. Despite fewer women using drugs, record numbers are losing their lives, with these figures likely underreported due to discrepancies in how unnatural deaths are investigated between genders.
Addressing a silent crisis
This alarming rise in fatalities comes against a backdrop where women, particularly those who use drugs, are at increased risk of domestic and sexual violence. The barriers to accessing support for women are monumental.
Given the profound levels of trauma experienced, it is unsurprising that women seek help. The domain of specialist treatment is predominantly male-oriented, creating an environment where women face discrimination and stigmatisation, particularly during sensitive periods such as pregnancy and childbirth. Mothers in particular report significant fears over potential repercussions for their children, which acts as a formidable barrier to seeking help.
Our Mission and Approach
The Women’s Project is committed to developing compassionate, trauma-sensitive responses. It addresses the significant stigma directed towards those with complex needs.
Our work is crucial in a landscape where the specific impacts of gender-based violence and trauma are not fully understood or integrated into service provision. Our women document how navigating child welfare, and medical systems creates toxic stress and trauma very rarely resulting in positive outcomes.
Our collaborations with academics and researchers ensure that the evidence we gather and the voices we amplify centre on women’s lived and living experiences, challenging the status quo and advocating for systemic change. We aim to address the lack of gender-sensitive responses in existing support systems and amplify women’s voices for change.
Core Pillars of Our Work
Reducing Stigma
At the heart of the Women’s Project is our commitment to dismantling the societal stigma surrounding women who use drugs. Through education, awareness campaigns, training and public advocacy, we strive to shift perceptions and promote a more compassionate understanding and approach to women and mothers across the UK.
Building Partnerships & Research
We believe in the power of collaboration and evidence-based advocacy. The Women’s Project works closely with related organisations, academics, and researchers to ensure that the voices and experiences of women, which too often go unheard, are at the centre of drug policy research and reform.
These partnerships not only build a strong support network for women but also enhance the impact of our training and awareness-raising activities.
Our collaborative efforts with researchers aim to ground our advocacy in solid evidence, highlighting the specific needs and challenges faced by women in the context of drug use and recovery.
Amplifying Voices
Central to our mission is the amplification of women’s voices. We utilise innovative and impactful means to bring the stories, experiences, and insights of women to the forefront of the drug policy reform conversation. By doing so, we not only validate women’s experiences but also highlight the urgent need for policy and societal change.
Integrative and Compassionate Approaches
We put on a number of recurring and one off events for women throughout the North East and in partnership with SISU, some throughout Scotland and the North East England.
These include, compassionate inquiry sessions and circles, meditation workshops, pottery classes, training in non-violent communication, an online ten week ‘Welcoming Ourselves Home’ programme led by Satya Dunning, gong baths, therapeutic and integrative writing sessions, mindful movement and yoga, and residential retreats.
We also offer regular training opportunities for women in the network of their choice, be that for further education, employment purposes or just to learn something new. Previous training in video making, content creation, advocacy and public speaking, working with the media, IT training and creative writing.
Support & Join
If you are a woman in North East or Scotland who identifies with our work, please reach out to find out how to be involved in the Recovering Justice Women’s Network
If you are a service provider, practitioner, service or researcher interested in our anti-stigma training, please feel free to reach out.
“For women, the need and desire to nurture each other is not pathological but redemptive, and it is within that knowledge that our real power is rediscovered. It is this real connection which is so feared by a patriarchal world. Only within a patriarchal structure is maternity the only social power open to women”
Audre Lorde
Funders
Our project would not be possible without the support of our funders and partners
