HOMELIFE

November 2023

L&Q Living’s Beverley Lewis House joined the Women’s Aid National Conference as a guest speaker.

The conference, held in the summer, is a key part of the events calendar within the domestic abuse sector. It brings together a wide and diverse range of leading voices from within and beyond the sector.

Beverely Lewis House is the UK’s only refuge for victims of domestic abuse with learning disabilities.

Our very own Ferdy Khanam, locality manager at Beverely Lewis House, and Gary Reeman, London Regional Business Manager, took part in a workshop, which focused on the needs of survivors with disabilities.


Speaking about the event, Ferdy said:

“The whole conference was uplifting. It was engaging and informative but gave us the platform to ask real questions and understand exactly how far this country has come to tackle domestic violence and what we can do about it.

“The conference was beautifully organised and managed well with the outbreak workshops were designed in small clusters to get the right people in the right rooms.”


With a focus on innovation and solution-focused perspectives and content, the key theme of the conference was around how, despite challenging times, we can together build a strong and future-fit federation, that continues to provide safety and support for survivors for as long as it is needed.


Kathleen Dean, event organiser at Women’s Aid, said:

"The Women's Aid Conference 2023 brought together frontline services, policymakers, commissioners and members from across the domestic abuse and VAWG sector to explore solution-focused perspectives and content, aimed at ensuring the safety of survivors and the survival of future-fit services, despite challenging times.

“We were absolutely delighted that Ferdy and Gary could join us from Beverley Lewis House, a specialist-supported living scheme in London, to discuss their experiences working with survivors with learning disabilities and complex needs.

"As part of a workshop focusing on the needs of deaf survivors and survivors with disabilities, Ferdy and Gary gave their specialist insight into the challenges and barriers that disabled women regularly face in accessing support services and spoke with participants about how the sector can expand and adapt to better support this vulnerable group."