Our service was established by a group of parents in Tralee, who in the early 1990’s were supporting their own adult daughters through the issue of Domestic Violence and were concerned about the impact of this trauma and the absence of a dedicated domestic violence service in the County.
This group of local people formed a committee to fundraise for the construction of a refuge in Tralee to provide a place of safety for women and children in County Kerry whose lives were affected by Domestic Violence – with the group being officially incorporated in 1992 as ADAPT Kerry Limited, T/a Kerry Women’s Refuge & Support Services, with the refuge opening its doors to its first families in 1996.
Today, we are a specialist domestic violence service, who in partnership with TUSLA – the Child & Family Agency – offer’s a place of safety and a range of supports to women and children throughout the County of Kerry whose lives are affected by Domestic Violence.
Our key aims are:
- To offer a non-directive and non-judgmental support service to female victims of domestic violence*
- To provide a referral and advocacy service for female victims of domestic violence and their children when required
- To raise awareness of the issue of Domestic Violence
- To work in partnership with other agencies and professionals to promote the welfare and wellbeing of women and children who are affected by this crime.
*Whilst we understand and accept that men can also be victims of Domestic Violence, international research consistently shows that at least one in five women will experience violence or abuse in their life-time and therefore we work with a Gender-based analysis of this crime.