A Norfolk and Waveney domestic abuse charity has launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise funds to provide vital services for the women and children living in refuges.

The funds will enable charity Leeway to provide an independent benefits advisor, for one day month, for service users.

This will support them to access Universal Credit and take control of their finances.

A Leeway spokesman said many women arrived at their refuges with limited access to money and having experienced financial abuse.

The campaign will also help Leeway fund activities for the women and children living in refuges.

Leeway CEO, Mandy Proctor, said: 'I am really excited to launch this campaign and hope that it receives the backing it deserves.

'It is really important that we can offer the women and children we support a positive environment to rebuild their lives. I have spoken before about the impact of financial abuse, so being able to fund a debt advisor would be a massive boost for our service users.'

Any money pledged would also provide therapeutic play activities for the children, enabling them to express themselves safely and interact with other children in the refuges in the west of the county.

The spokesman said this was important as it allowed them to come to terms with their experiences of domestic abuse.

It would also provide workshops to help women to build their self-esteem and confidence through art activities, creative writing and social skills.

'Having these activities will help our women to start to rebuild their lives and be confident moving forward in the future,' the spokesman said.

'Moving to a refuge is a big change and often very sudden and at a time in their lives when they are often feeling distressed. This is why it is so important that we are able to make the transitional period easier for the women and children that we support.'

Leeway has set a target of £4,000 to be able to provide this for service users and would like to thank all those that have supported the campaign, which will run for one month.

More information on the campaign can be found at www.crowdfunder.co.uk/support-the-women-and-children-in-our-refuges/