The partnership between TRBSE and the refuge Bury St Edmunds has focused around self-expression workshops with survivors of domestic violence that has had both a therapeutic effect for the women who participate and given an opportunity to share the expert voice of those with lived experience to all stakeholders including commissioners, health workers, police and importantly, family and friends of those who have been through the service of the refuge at Bury.

Women are given the opportunity through weekly workshops to develop short prose poetry that are then crafted into plays and songs. These workshops and performances have proved to be effective in helping women start to move away from recent traumas. TRBSE have provided access to young people’s productions through the children’s festival and holiday events to enable women and their children to experience positive benefits of creative cultural engagement – giving families who have experienced domestic violence an opportunity to relax and enjoy each the theatre experience.

The partnership has grown during the past 18 months and work from this programme continues to grow and be more widely shared.