Women's Support Services, Inc., (WSS), is a non-profit domestic violence agency serving Northwest Connecticut and the surrounding communities in New York and Massachusetts. The mission of WSS is to create a community free of domestic violence and abuse through intervention, prevention and education. We offer free, confidential, client-centered services focused on safety, support, advocacy, and community outreach.

Support from the Foundation for Community Health has been critical to the development of WSS programming, and FCH support over the past six years has enabled WSS to develop excellent relationships with area health and social service providers, schools, businesses and community members. These relationships will be key to promoting coordinated community response – a commitment that draws upon our entire community to combat abuse and promote messages of healthy behaviour, and capitalizes upon individual competencies of agencies to provide a holistic approach to intervention.

Domestic violence and abuse is a pervasive cultural problem. According to national surveys conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 3 women in Connecticut will experience rape, physical violence and/or stalking by an intimate partner in her lifetime. Results from Connecticut School Health Surveys in 2013 and 2015 revealed that one in four Connecticut teens experiences dating abuse each year.

Our current services include a 24-hour confidential hotline, short-term emergency shelter, individual counselling and safety planning, case management, support groups, legal advocacy, transportation, and referral. WSS staff members are available to accompany persons to court, assist in obtaining financial assistance, housing, employment, clothing, daycare, and other needs. In addition to providing direct services for victims of abuse, WSS is committed to violence prevention education and offers programming in our area schools and communities. WSS provides speakers for community groups, organizes community awareness activities, trains local professionals, and runs a Violence Prevention Education Program for grades pre-K through 12.

In the past year, Women’s Support Services:

• Worked with 527 clients - including 41 children - to provide support services and crisis response.
• Led 343 sessions on topics ranging from bullying and healthy relationships to teen dating violence and conflict resolution in schools, daycares and facilities.
• Delivered 794 individual counseling sessions.
• Provided court-based advocacy and support to 250 victims of family violence.   

There are many ways you can become involved in our efforts to end domestic violence and abuse. Please join us: http://www.wssdv.org and

www.facebook.com/Womens.Support.Services.