Rosa is a grantmaking charity that funds women's organisations across the UK. We have launched a response fund to provide grants to small, specialist women's organisations affected by the impact of Covid-19. Grants of up to 10,000 will help these organisations to deliver their vital services at this critical time of increased need. Those services include refuges for victims of domestic abuse, legal advice lines, maternity rights campaigns, specialist support for marginalised women, and more.
Covid-19 has exposed the reality that we live in an unequal society. Rosa funds grassroots women's organisations, and right now demand for their services is surging. These organisations are supporting increasing numbers of domestic abuse victims, campaigning for women's access to PPE that fits, and advising on employment rights - to name a few examples. In our survey of over 300 women's organisations across the UK, two thirds told us they're worried about surviving the crisis.
Rosa is looking to provide grants of up to 10,000 to help grassroots women's organisations secure the people and remote technology they need to survive the crisis. Many rely on limited staff capacity to deliver frontline services - but urgently need funds to meet the surge in demand while protecting employees' mental and physical health.
This is a global health crisis that's fast becoming a serious economic crisis. Women are more likely to struggle with debt and bills, are more likely to be on zero-hours contracts, and 45% of lone parents - 90% of whom are women - are living in poverty. After the immediate crisis has abated, small and specialist women's organisations will be the ones continuing to directly support society's most vulnerable women and girls.
