CoLab

✨What a night ✨

Last night we celebrated a decade of CoLab with an evening of reflection, conversation and community.

Over cake (made by our own Mahsin!) and mocktails, through workshops and speeches from our CEO Fiona Carden, Deputy CEO Jon Cook and Dr Sam Cole, we spent time looking back at the journey we've taken together and looking ahead to the future.

Our theme for our celebrations this month is hope.
Hope for individuals.
Hope for communities.
Hope for systems that work better together.
Hope that things will get better.
Hope for the future.

Thank you to everyone who joined us to mark 10 years of CoLab.

Here's to continuing to build a future rooted in collaboration, compassion and community ✨

We’re pleased to share that Colab Women is continuing its work as part of the new Devon Sexual Violence Partnership. ✨

This partnership reflects and strengthens work that has already been developed at Colab over recent years to improve access to specialist sexual violence support for women facing multiple barriers to engagement.

Through trauma-informed practice, relational advocacy, and flexible pathways of support, we have worked to create psychologically safe responses for women who may find it hardest to access traditional services — particularly where experiences of complex trauma, multiple disadvantage, or system involvement can make engagement difficult.

As part of the Devon Sexual Violence Partnership, we are building on that foundation rather than starting from scratch. This creates an opportunity to continue and enhance the work already established, while exploring new ways of extending specialist support so that more women can access it in ways that feel safe, responsive, and sustainable.

Our approach remains rooted in the understanding that healing does not happen through rigid pathways. It happens through trust, consistency, and support that meets women where they are, while remaining true to the principles of specialist sexual violence provision.

Our lead worker Tasch said ‘We’re proud to be working alongside partners across Devon to strengthen pathways, build on what has already been created, and help ensure women can access the support they need when they need it most.’

For more information please see https://devonrapecrisis.org.uk/the-devon-sexual-violence-support-partnership/