Support
Support for Adults
Northumberland Domestic Abuse Services (NDAS) is here to support and guide you through domestic abuse.
Please note, if you are in immediate danger, you should call 999 and speak to the police.
Our specially trained advisors will be your first point of contact at NDAS, they are there to listen to your story, believe you, and guide you through the process.
NDAS provides free, and confidential one-to-one emotional and practical support, which can be by phone, email or face-to-face.
Our practitioners cover the whole county of Northumberland and we are continually adapting our ways of working to ensure we can provide an outreach service for rural and outlying areas.
Domestic abuse can take many forms:
Physical harm
Emotional or psychological abuse
Sexual abuse
Financial control
Coercive behaviours
Stalking or harassment
Abuse can happen inside or outside the home, even after a relationship ends. You may feel afraid, isolated, or lack confidence. Recognising abuse is the first step to reclaiming your life.
LGBTQI+
1 in 4 LGBTQI+ people report that they have been victims of intimate partner/domestic abuse. You don’t have to be living with your partner to experience abuse. You might be experiencing threats from someone that you just meet for sex, or maybe a partner you don’t live with is making you do things by threatening to ‘out’ you to your children?
LGBTQI+ people live in a society that can be heterosexist and homophobic. Many LGBTQI+ people may have had negative experiences with services or service providers, or may be fearful of the Police and other statutory organisations.
NDAS does not discriminate. NDAS supports all victims of domestic/intimate partner violence and/or abuse. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-men and women are supported by our team of trained professional practitioners.
Support for Men
Northumberland Domestic Abuse Services provides support to heterosexual, gay, bisexual and trans men who are experiencing domestic abuse from a partner.
You may be bigger, stronger, or more confident than your partner outside your home or their company, but this doesn’t mean you cannot be experiencing domestic abuse. While the majority of survivors/victims are women, men do experience domestic violence and/or abuse and need support in the same way.
It is often hard for men to get help in these situations because of fears about being ridiculed, not being believed or being treated unfairly by agencies. At NDAS we are trying to change this.
How to access our support
Children & Young People
We have a specialist Children and Young People’s Psychotherapist who provides support to the children of the people we support who are affected by domestic abuse.
Through 1:1 psychotherapy our aim is to help children and young people to navigate their situation. Providing therapy to help them cope and recover from the long standing impact of domestic abuse, and to understand emotions and concerns with a view to supporting healthy and positive child development.
Please speak to your practitioner to discuss a referral for your children.
Unfortunately, we are currently unable to support children whose parent/guardian is not already being supported by our service but we are able to sign post other services that may be able to help.
Teenage Support
Teenage relationship abuse is when there is actual or threatened abuse within a romantic relationship or a previous relationship. One partner will try to maintain power and control over the other, leaving a significant impact on the person being controlled. At NDAS we recognize that young people can be affected by relationship abuse and are here to help.
Prevention Education
We work with groups of children and young people in schools and youth group settings to increase their awareness, to empower them to make positive decisions surrounding their emotional and personal relationships.
Through participating in skill and survival programmes and creative workshops, children and young people can gain the skills and understanding that will support them to navigate future relationships in a healthy way.
Sessions are workshop-style and interactive, and create a safe space to discuss ideas around healthy relationships, recognising abusive behaviours and developing tools for self-confidence, building resilience and self-esteem.
Sessions for younger children focus on healthy friendships, and mutual respect.
Our Prevention Practitioner role is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund up to the End March 2027.
Group Sessions
NDAS will:
Provide awareness and knowledge of domestic abuse in group work with children and young people aged 9 years and up to 18+, but flexibility for young people/ adults with special needs accessing the service for support
Develop and raise children’s and young people’s awareness to overcome the negative impacts of living with domestic abuse and unhealthy relationships in their lives
Provide a safe place to explore their own social, emotional and behavioural skills and wellbeing
Provide a toolkit of strategies to help manage, keep self-safe, raising self-worth and confidence
Work with vulnerable children and young people who are experiencing or, at risk of domestic abuse or sexual exploitation, ensuring safeguarding procedures are put in place
Support professionals working with children and young people, creating a referral pathway and providing training and awareness of domestic abuse
Evidence outcomes: by evaluating the tools and progress made by the children or young people
Please note, in order to comply with GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), personal data for group participants will be held by the host organisation (not NDAS). This data will only be requested from the organisation by NDAS Prevention Practitioner in the event of a safeguarding issue/concern.
If you are interested in our prevention sessions for children and young people, please call us on 01434 608030, email us on admin@nda.services or complete the form below:
Programmes
Domestic Abuse Programmes
Our programmes help survivors understand their experiences, rebuild self-esteem, and reduce the risk of future abusive relationships - empowering them to live safely and confidently.
We mostly run programmes in our dedicated space at our Hexham office, but we also try to facilitate programmes in the North of the county, please get in touch if you would like further information.
Freedom Programme
The Freedom Programme is a domestic violence programme, designed by Pat Craven who is an ex Probation and Parole Officer. She has worked with a wide range of people and has written a selection of books on domestic violence and its effects.
This programme helps you to distinguish between abusive and non-abusive behaviours in a safe, supportive and friendly environment. The course focuses on the types of tactics that a perpetrator would use and compares these to how an individual would behave in a healthy relationship.
Freedom Forever Programme (Coming Soon!)
The Freedom Forever Programme is a follow on programme, for those who have completed the Freedom Programme.
Unfortunately, when a victim breaks free from an abuser the abuse can escalate, as they begin to lose the power and control they once had. This course aims to teach survivors the skills and knowledge to live a life free from abuse.
The course enables women to receive further advice and support in a group setting around issues such as managing child contact and coercive control. It includes an overview of child protection procedures and information about how to seek the most effective legal advice. There are exercises on how to increase assertiveness and to respond to the specific effects on the children from exposure to domestic abuse.
Recovery Toolkit
This programme is designed for women who have left abusive relationships. It aims to provide the resources to maximise your own potential.
The aims of the course are:
To positively change how you perceive yourself
To encourage the development of strategies to help you cope with emotional pain
To recognise the effects of abuse on children, encouraging positive parenting skills
To positively change how you interact with others
To set individual goals and to give individuals the knowledge needed to enable them to move forward in their lives and develop healthy relationships
Training & Awareness
NDAS can provide training in a range of areas; domestic abuse awareness raising, domestic violence in teen relationships and understanding the needs of children and young people affected by domestic abuse.
Domestic Abuse Training
We work with groups of children and young people in schools and youth group settings to increase their awareness, to empower them to make positive decisions surrounding their emotional and personal relationships.
Through participating in skill and survival programmes and creative workshops children and young people can gain the skills and understanding that will support them to navigate future relationships in a healthy way.
Sessions are workshop-style and interactive, and create a safe space to discuss ideas around healthy relationships, recognising abusive behaviours and developing tools for self-confidence, building resilience and self-esteem.
Sessions for younger children focus on healthy friendships, and mutual respect.
Our Prevention Practitioner role is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund up to the End March 2027.