Our 400th Living Wage employer: RISE

We are delighted to announce that on 25 April this campaign hit the massive milestone of 400 Living Wage employers in the City. Number 400 to pledge their commitment to a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work was Brighton & Hove charity RISE. We spoke to Jo Gough, CEO at RISE:

Tell us a little bit about RISE.
At RISE, we have a vision of freedom from abuse and violence – and we are working across Brighton & Hove and East Sussex to achieve it.

RISE stands for Refuge, Information, Support and Education. We offer the only local domestic abuse helpline as well as emergency refuge accommodation, legal and housing advice, counselling, specialist help for families and a dedicated LGBT* service.

What are the most rewarding aspects of your work?
Seeing the people we work with realise the power they have to change their lives and live them free from domestic abuse and violence, through recovery seeing what they survived as giving them strength to believe in themselves, their families and other survivors, using their knowledge and experience to start their own projects and start their own work.

Does your organisation have an ethos?
Every week 2 women in England and Wales are murdered by their partner or ex-partner. 1 in 4 women will be affected by domestic abuse at some point in their life. Domestic abuse is therefore everyone’s business. RISE work with over 2,500 women and children each year in Brighton and Hove to offer safety, support and hope. However, there is still more to do to eradicate abuse in relationships once and for all.  Together we can make a difference.

Why have you signed up to the Brighton & Hove Living Wage campaign?
We believe everyone should be paid a wage comparable to living expenses. This is particularly important in Brighton which has rising house prices and RISE predominantly employs women who frequently experience gender pay discrimination.

How does staff well being impact your organisation?
A strong and happy workforce means we can support women at their most vulnerable point with a positive strength based approach.

What’s special about working in Brighton & Hove?
Brighton & Hove is a fantastic, vibrant city full of passionate people committed to community well-being.

Does Rise have any good news to share with us?
We help more than 2,500 women and children in Brighton & Hove alone every year and in our latest feedback from 89% of women accessing our services say that coming to this service has made a positive difference in their lives

Do you have any events coming up?
We have the Heroes Run on 13 May at Hove Lawns, an opportunity for children and adults alike to put their pants on over their trousers and run to raise money for a child psychotherapist service at RISE. There is a 10k and 5k run and a 500m Dash and 1km Sprint for children and young people. Register at www.heroesrun.org.uk

How can people support your work?
You can sign up to our volunteering list to help out with events and other work around RISE, have something you do already that you want to turn into fundraising or want to do something to fundraise for people affected by domestic abuse, get in touch with us at fundraising@riseuk.org.uk or 01273 622828 ext. 231

Where should people go to find out more?
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter @riseuk
Find more information on the people we support and how you can get involved at www.riseuk.org.uk

Brighton Chamber is hosting a special Living Wage coffee morning at BrewDog Brighton on Thursday 24 May. Book your free place here to network with other Living Wage employers and enjoy some delicious cake from Infinity Foods Kitchen.