A collaborative group of Family Resource Centres, frontline organisations, and partnership companies across Galway, Mayo, and Roscommon, has launched a crucial resource for women experiencing domestic abuse.

The Community Response to Domestic Abuse Network Western Region’s Steps to Safety leaflet is informative guide is designed to offer clear steps and essential support for women living with domestic abuse, providing a vital lifeline to those in need.

Annie Rozario is Coordinator of the Gort Resource Centre and Chair of the Community Response to Domestic Abuse Network Western Region.

“To effectively address domestic abuse in our communities, it’s vital that appropriate supports are visible and accessible for all women in towns and villages across our region of Galway, Mayo, and Roscommon,” she said.

The Steps to Safety leaflet offers women practical steps they can take to protect themselves and their children from domestic abuse and coercive control, a crime that many victims may not fully understand or know how to address.

It includes information on local support services and explains the actions women can take to enhance their safety.

Recognising the cultural and linguistic diversity in the region, the leaflet is available in several languages, including Irish, English, Portuguese, French, Spanish, Polish, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Pashto, and Arabic, with plans to add Swahili. This ensures that the resource can reach as many women as possible.

In celebration of the leaflet’s launch, Elizabeth Peña, from CUAN, the National Domestic Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Agency, and Mary McDermott, CEO of Safe Ireland, attended a workshop at the Menlo Park Hotel.

This workshop provided a valuable opportunity for community organisations across the western counties to collaborate with national domestic abuse agencies, in line with Ireland’s third National Domestic Abuse Strategy, Zero Tolerance.

The Steps to Safety leaflet is a key part of the Domestic Abuse Network’s commitment to supporting women in the Western Region, ensuring that they have access to clear, practical guidance when they need it most.

Pictured at the launch of Steps to Safety were (from left) Darine Cross (Cuan – The Domestic, Sexual & Gender Based Violence Agency); Elo Uzor (Safe Ireland); Elizabeth Peña (Cuan); Elo Uzor (Safe Ireland); Annie Rozario (Chair Community Response to Domestic Violence Western Region Network), and Mary McDermott (CEO Safe Ireland).