Women's Aid East & Midlothian

19/06/2026

A huge thank you to Foxlake Adventures for choosing to support us at their fantastic Ladies’ Night fundraising event!

Our team who attended had an absolute blast, enjoying the activities and soaking up the incredible atmosphere. It was a brilliant evening filled with fun, laughter, and community spirit.

We’re so grateful for your support and generosity. Every pound raised helps us continue supporting women and children across East Lothian and Midlothian who are affected by domestic abuse.

Thank you to everyone who took part, donated, and helped make the evening such a success. We loved being part of it and can’t wait to see what you do next! 💜

08/06/2026

🎉 A Huge Thank You! 🎉

We are absolutely delighted to share that Chloe and Tegan from Musselburgh Grammar School have won £3,000 for us through their fantastic Youth and Philanthropy Initiative (YPI) presentation last week!

Their hard work, passion, and powerful advocacy shone through, helping to raise awareness of the impact of domestic abuse and the importance of supporting women, children and young people across East Lothian and Midlothian.

Thank you, Chloe and Tegan, for choosing WAEML and for representing our work with such commitment and compassion. We are incredibly grateful for your support and this generous award, which will help us continue providing vital services to those who need them most.

Congratulations on a well-deserved win! 💜

CommunitySupport YoungPeopleMakingADifference 💜✨

08/06/2026

💜

LADIES NIGHT 2026 - 19th June - This year we will be raising money for through a raffle and bake sale. workshop links are available on our website. Please book and come down, always a great night and for a great cause.

06/06/2026

🌸 Celebrating Our Latest Freedom Programme Graduates 🌸

This week, we had the privilege of celebrating another incredible group of women who have completed the Freedom Programme.

The table was filled with delicious food lovingly provided by the women themselves as a gesture of thanks and celebration. It was a beautiful reflection of the kindness, generosity and community that had grown throughout their journey together.

The photographs of hands represent each of the individual groups that came together on the day.
One of the women created these beautiful heart keepsakes for everyone in the group. Each heart serves as a reminder of who they are, the strength they hold, and how far they have come. ❤️

We were also deeply touched by the flowers, cards and gifts presented to our facilitators, and by the gift voucher given to the WAEML team, allowing us to come together and share some treats. Your thoughtfulness means so much to us.

Most importantly, we celebrate every woman who graduated. The courage it takes to begin this journey, the determination to keep going, and the strength to build a future free from abuse should never be underestimated. 💪

We are so proud of each and every one of you. Thank you for allowing us to be part of your journey. 🫶🏻

Empowerment 💜🌷✨

02/06/2026

‼️ Important announcement: Additional Funding Available for Fund to Leave Support for East Lothian and Midlothian

We’re pleased to share that we have received a funding top-up for the Fund to Leave, helping more women and children who are experiencing domestic abuse to access the financial support they need to leave safely.

For many women, the biggest barrier to escaping abuse is money. The Fund to Leave can help with essential costs that make a safe move possible, such as transport, emergency accommodation, household essentials, and other practical expenses.

If you know a woman who may be eligible for support, please encourage her to get in touch with us. Our team can discuss her circumstances confidentially and explore what assistance may be available.

💜 Everyone deserves the chance to live free from abuse.

📞 Contact us on 0131 561 5800 to find out more or make a referral.

The Scottish Government’s Fund to Leave is open to applications, and we are a delivery partner. The fund offers women based in Scotland up to £1,000 for essentials to support the costs of leaving, planning to leave or staying left from an abusive relationship. This might include costs related to moving home or increasing safety to enable a woman to remain in her own home.

The fund is limited and will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis by fund delivery partners, which include participating Women’s Aid services and other specialist delivery services. To apply for women in East Lothian and Midlothian contact us directly on 0131 663 9827.

See more information about the fund:
https://womensaid.scot/fund-to-leave-scotland

22/05/2026

How can we improve local lives?
You are invited to public meetings throughout June to tell us what matters to you and your communities.
Organised by the council and our Midlothian Community Planning partners, including the Third Sector, police, fire, & the health and social care partnership, what you tell us will help shape future Single Midlothian Plan priorities.
For more, including dates, times and venues: https://ow.ly/X6tg50Z2zKw

22/05/2026

💜 A huge thank you to Jump Ship Brewing for raising an incredible £250 for WAEML!

As a local and award-winning alcohol-free brewery, Jump Ship Brewing made a powerful choice to support women and children subjected to domestic abuse and we are so grateful for their generosity and solidarity.

Every pound raised helps us provide safe, trauma-informed support, advocacy and recovery services across East Lothian and Midlothian.

Thank you to Sonja and the whole Jump Ship team for choosing us and helping women build safer futures. 🫶🏻

🍺✨ Why not check them out at Jump Ship Brewing

19/05/2026

Our new research report, “It’s always there, like a shadow behind you”: Women’s Experiences of Coerced Debt and Recovery in Scotland, shows that when systems fail to recognise coerced debt, survivors are forced to make impossible financial choices just to survive.

In the absence of effective support, women adopt financial survival strategies to manage coerced debt, such as relying on family, going without essentials, selling possessions, taking on further debt, returning to abusive partners or engaging in unsafe or exploitative work. These are responses to crises within systems that offer no safe alternatives.

The research by Scottish Women’s Aid, commissioned by the Scottish Illegal Money Lending Unit and Trading Standards Scotland draws on qualitative research with women in Scotland affected by coerced debt and the Advocacy Workers who support them, sharing their experiences in their own words.

Survivors should not carry the financial consequences of abuse. Systems must act.

We need practical financial support and debt relief, so survivors are not forced to survive in crisis.

📄 Read the report and learn how systems must change:https://womensaid.scot/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SWA-Coerced-Debt-Report-2026.pdf

📄Short on time? Read the summary of the report:https://womensaid.scot/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SWA-Coerced-Debt-Report-Summary-2026.pdf

14/05/2026

💚 Today we’re wearing green for Mental Health Awareness Week….. well some of us are! Guess who is cheating with AI cos she couldn’t find anything green to wear? 🤦🏻‍♀️

Green is the colour of mental health awareness and today, we are wearing it to show solidarity, start conversations, and remind each other that mental health matters.

At WAEML, we know the women and children we support often carry invisible weight. The mental health impact of abuse is real, and recovery takes time, compassion, and specialist support. That’s what we’re here for.

Whether you’re wearing green today or just pausing to check in with someone, every action counts. 💚

Share your green photos in the comments 📸

13/05/2026

🌿💚 As part of Mental Health Awareness Week, we closed our doors and gave our incredible team a day to breathe, connect and be looked after.

This morning, some of our team headed into Edinburgh for Real Women of Edinburgh which is a brilliant tour with the wonderful Invisible Cities Tours. Thanks to Paul James Stewart who offered some fascinating history, inspiration and plenty of banter! 😄

Others spent the morning getting creative at an art class facilitated by Margaret and Mary of . This was a beautiful, grounding way to spend some time together and uncovered some amazing talent!

We all came together for a gorgeous lunch provided by 🙌

The highlight of our afternoon was a visit from four incredible women Mags, Emma, Donna and Beverly. They came to share the difference WAEML’s support has made in their lives. There are no words for what moments like that mean to our team. We are so grateful to you all 🫶

We also need to say a huge thank you to
for getting us safely to where we needed to be!