Edinburgh Women's Aid

What Edinburgh Women's Aid does

Edinburgh Women's Aid (EWA) is a Scottish charitable organization founded in 1973 that delivers specialist domestic abuse support services to women, children, and young people affected by current or post-separation intimate partner abuse in Edinburgh. Its service portfolio spans crisis intervention, refuge accommodation, community-based recovery support, legal advice and court support (EDDACS), children and young people's services (CYP), peer support, the MARDA (Mothers Aiding Recovery from Domestic Abuse) program, MARAC multi-agency risk coordination, and the Works 4 Women employability initiative delivered in partnership with Shakti Women's Aid. The organization also publishes information resources such as Cover Your Tracks Online for digital safety. EWA is regulated by the Care Inspectorate and the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) and is governed by a Board of Trustees chaired by Morag Waller, with Linda Rodgers as CEO.

EWA's distribution model is direct-to-survivor and referral-based: service users access support via a six-day-a-week helpline, a drop-in service at its Edinburgh office (4 Cheyne Street), refuge accommodation across all four Edinburgh localities (29+ spaces), community outreach, and structured referrals from Social Work, Health, Police, Education, and voluntary-sector partners. The underlying technology footprint is minimal — a website, social media presence, and JustGiving-powered donations — there is no proprietary platform, app, or AI infrastructure in evidence.

The revenue model is donation- and grant-driven. EWA raises funds through JustGiving, Christmas appeals, and fundraising campaigns, supplemented by grant income tied to Scottish Government and City of Edinburgh Council delivery of the Equally Safe strategy plus corporate partnerships (e.g., State Street, Scottish Chamber of Commerce). All services are provided free of charge to service users; there is no commercial pricing model. No revenue, expenditure, or headcount figures are disclosed in the source material.

Name

Edinburgh Women's Aid

Legal name

Edinburgh Women's Aid

Website

https://edinwomensaid.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Edinburgh Women's Aid is a 50-year-old Scottish charity providing free crisis, refuge, legal, recovery, and children-and-young-people support services to women and families affected by domestic abuse in Edinburgh, funded through donations, grants, and partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Domestic Abuse Support Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Child and Youth Services (624110), Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Domestic Violence & Abuse Support Services (BPAGAEAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Family & Parenting Support Services (BPAGAEAC), Housing Assistance & Homeless Services (BPAGAEAB)

Keywords

• Domestic abuse support
• Refuge accommodation services
• Crisis helpline support
• Women's community support
• Children young people services

Headquarters

HQ city

Edinburgh

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: The organization raises funds through donations, Christmas appeals, and fundraising activities. Donations are collected via JustGiving platform and other fundraising campaigns.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Edinburgh Women's Aid is a specialist domestic abuse charity providing free, confidential and non-judgemental support to women, children and young people in Edinburgh. Its core offerings include a six-day-a-week helpline and crisis support, safe refuge accommodation, community-based recovery support, specialist legal advice and court support (EDDACS), the Works 4 Women employability program, the MARDA service for mothers, the CEDAR trauma-informed project, peer support, and dedicated children and young people (CYP) services. All services are delivered free of charge through self-referral, professional referral and direct community contact.

Product overview

Edinburgh Women's Aid offers a comprehensive suite of domestic abuse support services rather than a unified technology product. The organization provides crisis intervention through its Helpline and Drop-in Service, safe accommodation via Refuge Services, and ongoing recovery support through Community-based Support, the MARDA service, and Peer Support. Specialized legal advocacy is delivered through the Legal Services Project and Court Support (EDDACS). The Works 4 Women employability program, run in partnership with Shakti Women's Aid, helps survivors achieve financial independence. Children and young people receive dedicated support through CYP services including children's rights advocacy and art therapy. The organization also operates MARAC for high-risk case coordination and provides the Cover Your Tracks Online safety resource.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Helpline and Crisis Support Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Supported 440 children and young people over two years with services including safe accommodation, specialist housing support, legal advice and help securing employment
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Stills: Centre for PhotographyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 October 2023Partnership with Stills: Centre for Photography in Cockburn Street to deliver the 'A Source of Strength' photo exhibition showcasing photographs created by children and mothers about their relationships.
• School of Social and Political Science at Edinburgh UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 June 2023Co-hosted 'Changing the Landscape: 50 years of activism and action against domestic abuse' seminar at Edinburgh University.
• genderEDminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 June 2023Co-hosted seminar on domestic abuse activism and policy with genderED.
• Shakti Women's AidcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Shakti Women's Aid to deliver the Works 4 Women employability service, supporting women affected by domestic abuse to go into business for themselves.
• University of EdinburghcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with University of Edinburgh on photo exhibition and research initiatives. Also co-hosted seminar with School of Social and Political Science and genderED.
• Scottish Chamber of Commerce - Women's Business MentoringcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerReferral partnership for Works 4 Women participants to access Women's Business Mentoring through the Scottish Chamber of Commerce for business support and advice.
• State StreetminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerState Street is working on a project with EWA as part of the Works 4 Women Employability Project, providing opportunities for supported women.
• Scottish GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Scottish Government in delivering Equally Safe strategy. Equalities Minister and COSLA have highlighted importance of partnership between Scottish Government, Local Authorities and specialist services.
• City of Edinburgh CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with City of Edinburgh Council and COSLA in delivering Equally Safe and addressing domestic abuse in Edinburgh.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights12 records

Broad incumbents

• Refuge: UK's largest domestic abuse charity, operating the National Domestic Abuse Helpline and a national network of refuges; overlaps with EWA's service portfolio but at a national scale with significantly larger resources.
• Women's Aid Federation of England: National federation coordinating 160+ Women's Aid member organizations in England; comparable in mission and federation role to Scottish Women's Aid, providing policy and operational infrastructure for grassroots member services.
• NSPCC: UK-wide child protection charity offering helpline, therapeutic services, and child-focused advocacy; serves a partially overlapping child-survivor segment as EWA's CYP services, but with a broader child welfare mandate.

Emerging players

• Rape Crisis Scotland: National umbrella for sexual violence support services in Scotland; complementary rather than directly overlapping with EWA, but increasingly partnering on intersecting domestic and sexual abuse caseloads in Edinburgh.

Regional players

• Women's Aid Federation Northern Ireland: Federation of local Women's Aid groups across Northern Ireland; same model as Scottish Women's Aid and EWA but serving a different UK jurisdiction, with comparable service portfolio and beneficiary focus.
• Aberdeen Women's Aid: Provides refuge and community-based domestic abuse support in Aberdeen; operates the same Women's Aid service model in a different Scottish city and is a direct Scottish peer to EWA.
• Dundee Women's Aid: Delivers refuge, outreach, and children-and-young-people support services in Dundee under the same Women's Aid framework; directly comparable service mix and beneficiary profile to EWA.

Direct peers

• Scottish Women's Aid: National federation of Women's Aid groups across Scotland; sets policy, coordinates member organizations (including EWA), and operates the 24-hour Scottish Domestic Abuse Helpline that EWA's helpline redirects to after hours.
• Shakti Women's Aid: Edinburgh-based specialist domestic abuse and Black/Minority Ethnic women's support organization; co-delivers the Works 4 Women employability programme with EWA and shares the same survivor population and locality.
• Glasgow Women's Aid: Largest Women's Aid affiliate in Scotland, providing refuge, outreach, and recovery services in Glasgow; operates an almost identical service model to EWA at a different Scottish city scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/edinwomensaid
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/edinburgh-womens-aid
• Instagraminstagram.com/edinbwa
• Xx.com/edinwomensaid

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Edinburgh Women's Aid