The Women?s Resource Centre, a local helping agency for women, has received accreditation from an internationally respected organisation.

The centre offers crisis intervention services and counselling for women involved in abusive relationships in addition to community education programmes for school-age children. Reviewers from the Council on Accreditation, a US based organisation, examined the programmes and the standard of service offered by the centre.

Having reached this milestone, executive director Penny Dill is encouraging other local charities to take the same route so donors and members of the community can be assured their dollar is being spent wisely.

Mrs. Dill says the accreditation also means the centre?s programmes are on par with those offered at other international helping agencies.

?This accreditation will make us accountable to the donor community and assure them that we are using the best practices we can with each programme and that we are fully qualified to do what we say we?re doing,? she said. The reviewers evaluated the centre?s Court Advocate Programme, the crisis hotline, the sexual assault response team, and general counselling services. Since so many local charities compete for the same dollar Mrs. Dill says it is important for charities to demonstrate they are true to their values and are striving for better service and management.

Statistics gathered by the Women?s Resource Centre show that while women have become proactive about seeking help, stress on local families is continuing to rise. Although women are aware of where they can go for help, Mrs. Dill says the stress on families is one of the root causes of domestic violence.

Women who press charges are also continuing to withdraw their complaints once the Police arrive on the scene.

?What we need to do is get swifter sentencing and that abuse is taken seriously by women and men. Women are continuing to call the police and withdraw their complaints when the police arrive on the scene. It?s frustrating for the Police because they?re called to a case and women decide not to go ahead with it for a variety of reasons, many of which are financial.?

Statistics gathered by the Women?s Resource Centre between January, 2003 to December, 2003 show that a total of 288 clients used the programmes services for help.

Out of these women, 41 percent were the victims of domestic violence. In this same year, 18 percent of women who came to the centre are being harassed and 11 percent were seeking general advice. The majority of women who came to the centre are also between the ages of 30 to 39 with a significant majority working in the retail, banking, hotel and health industries. A breakdown of the age group also reveals that 26 percent of clients are older women between the ages of 40 to 49. Often, retirement age women are taking care of grandchildren and holding a home together.

?We are looking at a new group of people who deal with an incredible amount of stress and are often the caretakers of grandchildren as their own children may be involved in a drug-related problems,? said Mrs. Dill.

Mrs. Dill said another trend the WRC is looking at is unemployment among women, a trend that is beginning to impact women in Bermuda as it is in other countries in the world. While she hopes the accreditation will heighten the centre?s profile in the community, Mrs. Dill says all of the women who receive counselling services can be assured counsellors are committed to providing the best service possible.

The Women?s Resource Centre was started in 1987 by Sylvia Hayward as the Rape Crisis Centre.