Preston Road Women’s Centre
1076. Lisa Mari Hilder
Lisa Mari Hilder, from Hull, has raised over £10m for women’s services in Yorkshire through her volunteer roles with the ‘Preston Road Women’s Centre’ and ‘Bradford Rape Crisis’, supporting thousands of vulnerable women.
In Hull, an estimated 25,000 women and 19,000 children will experience domestic abuse each year. Lisa’s work has funded outreach work, training courses and housing referrals for over 230 women and 580 children who are referred from social services and ‘Women’s Aid.’ Lisa’s work culminated in the launch of the not-for-profit law firm ‘Affordable Justice’ which is based at ‘Preston Road Women’s Centre’ and supported by Josie Sherlock, Point of Light recipient #49. This has helped more than 120 women to access free legal services. Her exceptional fundraising is a result of grants from Big Lottery Fund, working with social enterprises, and leading social investments. Last year Lisa won a Third Sector Award for her outstanding fundraising.
In a personal letter to Lisa, Prime Minister Theresa May said:
“Thanks to your tireless commitment to ‘Preston Road Women’s Centre’ and your ongoing exceptional fundraising, thousands of women have been able to access life-changing services. I wish you every success as you continue to
provide access to domestic violence and abuse services, outreach support, and legal services for some of the most vulnerable women and children in our society.”
Lisa said:
“I am delighted to have been selected for a Points of Light Award. The work I do at ‘Preston Road Women’s Centre’ is part of a mammoth team effort to provide high quality, sustainable services to women and children fleeing violence and abuse in the city and is really a recognition of this amazing team’s achievement as well as my own contribution.”