New safe house in Jersey provides 'lifeline' for women fleeing domestic abuse

• Women who have previously used the service describe it as a "lifeline"

Jersey Women's Refuge has opened its new "safe house" for women who are experiencing domestic abuse.

For obvious reasons, the location of women's refuges in the islands is never disclosed to protect the people who live there.

The organisation can now look after women no matter what their needs are, including those with pets, male children under 18 and those with disabilities.

The chief executive officer of Jersey Women's Refuge, Lisa Leventhal, hopes the newly renovated rooms will help women and their children feel comfortable and safe.

She said: "It gives them the pause they need to feel protected, it's such a calm and relaxing place here.

"Although initially, they may not feel that because they come often to us in trauma, it allows them a little bit more time to just settle."

They had previously only been able to accept mothers with sons under 15, but this has now been expanded up to 18-years-old and the family will have a self-contained flat.

The charity has helped many women in their decades of work, including "Alice", not her real name to protect her identity.

She was put in touch with the organisation and they helped her through an abusive relationship.

She believes that without this help, her life could have been completely different.

Alice said: "The fact that they said 'yes, the way you are feeling is not ok, the way you're being treated is not acceptable, you are being abused,' was enough for me to recognise how bad things had got, and enough for me to end the relationship."

For anyone experiencing domestic abuse, help is available in Jersey and Guernsey by clicking here.

Want to find out more about the stories making the headlines? Don't miss Channelcast - the Channel Islands current affairs podcast brought to you by ITV News: