Free advice for parents and carers from Friday 5pm to Saturday 9am and Saturday 5pm to Sunday 9am every weekend. Call, text,whatsapp on 07300516783.
Receive one to one support from our trained volunteers on the following areas:Talk through your concerns
Confidential support for women affected by domestic abuse
Advice and support with school exclusions and concerns about your child
Family courts
Someone to talk to
Support with ongoing involvement of social services with you family.
Who we are
Keeping Families Together is a charity based in the heart of Wandsworth London.The charity provides a safe environment and support for families, young people and individuals in the community that are struggling with day to day issues.
We are built on Christian values and we work with everyone regardless of their religion.
Timeline
June 2008-End of September 2021– Known as Wandsworth Youth for Christ.
October 2021– Keeping Families Together Charity was launched and affiliate to Youth for Christ.
Our Vision
Our vision is to enable and empower young people and their families to prosper in life.
Our Aim
To Keep Families Together.
APRIL 2024
Brought to you by
Keeping Families Together
Keeping Families Together has launched a free advice helpline to support people in the local community with domestic violence, family courts, housing, and other family issues.
Wandsworth-based charity, Keeping Families Together, has launched a nightline for parents and carers in South West London, which will provide free, otherwise unavailable support with important family issues in the evening and early hours of the morning.
Founded in 2021 by Deepika Makwana, Keeping Families Together is based out of East Hill Baptist Church in East Hill and seeks to help families who are struggling with day-to-day issues, as well as supporting them through family courts, school exclusions and assessments, and connecting them with social services, solicitors, councillors and others who can provide additional help.
The charity’s early intervention approach provides support for parents and children through workshops centred on issues of loneliness to minimise the risk of young people becoming isolated in society and falling into gang culture.
The new free-to-access helpline is run by a team of trained volunteers and offers confidential support for a range of issues that families and young people in Wandsworth may face, including domestic abuse; bullying; the family courts process; housing; social services; concerns about children, alongside other family concerns.
Speaking about the helpline, Dee Makwana, Volunteer Director at Keeping Families Together, explained: “Unfortunately, our advice line is heavily oversubscribed, and we are sometimes unable to help all of our potential service users. Many parents and young people in the community are also unable to call during regular hours because of work, childcare and other commitments, and so they miss out on the support we can offer them.
“We are therefore delighted to be expanding this free service into the evenings and early mornings on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
“This would not be possible without our excellent volunteers, volunteer assistant director, Lisa Idrisu, the trustees of the charity and the time they give up. We are grateful for the continued support of our sponsor, Rockwell – which has kindly donated the resources we needed to make this big next step.”
Property developer Rockwell is committed to building and enhancing local communities, whilst bringing investment to the neighbourhood. It believes that long-term partnerships, carefully designed to bring tangible benefits to local people, can transform communities for the better, much in the same way that its buildings do.
To show their support for Keeping Families Together, and the volunteers who work tirelessly to support those most in need, Rockwell’s team raised more than £3,000 for the charity by walking 30km across London throughout the night.
In times of need volunteers will be available on the helpline throughout the evening and early hours of the morning for any struggling person to speak to, to talk through any problem.
To access the new free advice line, call, text or WhatsApp the team on 07300 516 783:
• From Friday 5pm through to 9am on Saturday
• From Saturday 5pm through to 9am on Sunday
Dee and Lisa spoke at the panel discussion that took place at St Annes Church on Friday 8th March at 7.30pm.
JANUARY 2024
WOW parent forum with Keeping Families Together with our guest speaker CEO of Wandsworth Council.
DECEMBER 2023
Women’s Business Networking Christmas Party
Keeping Families Together were invited to the Women Business Networking Christmas party with the Mayor of Wandsworth.
The Mayor of Wandsworth vsisted Keeping Families Together at the True Brew Cafe.
VAWG Event
Keeping Families Together attended the VAWG Event o the 6th December 24 at the Civic Suite.
Good to catch up with Dom and his colleague from Rockwell. Thank you for supporting us with the work we carry out in the community through Keeping Families Together charity.
At Rockwell we believe in making a real difference in our community. We are pleased to announce our November fundraising event – Rockwell Charity Night Walk, where every step counts towards supporting Keeping Families Together, one of the unsung heroes of Wandsworth’s social services system.
This remarkable charity collaborates with social services, schools, parents, and professionals to empower families and minimise the risk of young people becoming isolated in society.
On Thursday 23rd November, we’re taking a long, adventurous 30 kilometres night walk around London. We will start at our development Vetro, near Canary Wharf, from which we will make our way south of the river, taking in the likes of our One Battersea Bridge and Hurlingham Waterfront projects, before ending at our office in St. James’s.
We’d love for you to be part of our mission and would be extremely grateful for any contributions. For every donation made via the link below, Rockwell will match the amount raised.
Make sure to follow us for updates!
The Mayor of Wandsworth
The charities Councillor Juliana Annan has chosen to support in 2023/24 are the Black Minds Matter project, The Katherine Low Settlement and Keeping Families Together.
Keeping Families Together is a Wandsworth charity which provides a community and a safe environment to help young people detach themselves from gang culture and keep them in education. It also supports parents with training, workshops, and administration to alleviate loneliness and help families stay together during difficult times.
For families in the Wandsworth social service system, the charity works closely with social services, schools and other professionals, and also with parents, to move the family forward and reduce the risk of social services removing the child. It takes self-referrals from parents as well as Children’s Social Services and other charities. This is an early intervention project; the earlier a referral is received, the better the chance of supporting the family to the best of their ability.
The charity also provides support for young people who are about to be excluded from school, including children with autism who may lack the additional support they need. Referrals can be made by parents, a teacher, social services or other charities. Workers go into schools in Wandsworth and carry out group or one-on-one sessions, listening to why young people are having behaviour problems and trying to find the underlining causes. They then work together with the children, school, parents and social services if they are involved, to provide alternative solutions before exclusion.
Meeting with VAWG October 2023
Keeping Families Together volunteers team had a constructive meeting with Kira from Wandsworth Council VAWG and the community police Emma and Jayne at the True Brew Cafe East Hill Baptist Church.
The Mayor of Wandsworth Dinner and Dance evening
Keeping Families Together attended the Mayor of Wandsworth dinner and dance evening to fundraise for three of the Mayors charities.
Keeping Families Together been one of the charities.
AUGUST 2023
Keeping Families Together would like to say a massive thank you to Enable for providing us with free tickets to the Battersea Park concert.
SEPTEMBER 2022
The confidential domestic abuse support takes place every Mondays in undisclosed place for women to receive support and to provide a safety plan for the women and their children.
The group have women attending regularly and receive peer support as well as one to one support from our trained volunteers and therapeutic art workshops provided by Dee.
If you would like to make referral to this closed group please contact Dee on [email protected] or Lisa on [email protected] for further information.
May 2022
Keeping Families Together and WOW MUMS parent forum takes place every Mondays during term time. The aim of the forum is support parents through their toughest times and listen their issues and local issues. This few months we are focusing on mental health and ending violence against women and girls and getting single mothers and fathers back into work or set up their own businesses.
MP Marsha De Cordova visits our parents to talk about ending violence against women and girls and to meet the mothers and listen their stories around domestic abuse.
MARCH 2022-DECEMBER 2022
Wandsworth Lions FC and Keeping Families Together chill out sessions for the under 13s team that takes place every Thursday evenings.
Feedback from young people.
“We love coming to chill out after training it is good to know that we have a safe to come to and chill out with the team.” James
“We like to say thank you to our coach and Dee from Keeping Families Together for providing the space and food for the team” Lance
“Thank you to our coach for giving us this opportunity to get to know our team members and for buying the PlayStation 5” David
OCTOBER 2021
Keeping Families Together receive referrals from Enable social prescribing Team, Heista, Early Help and Wandsworth Children services regarding housing. We have noticed that majority of our cases are from Battersea and others from Wandsworth Borough areas. We have noted that it is not just housing issues the services users have there are many other issues.
Cllr Kate Stock and Cllr Piers McCasland and Cllr Simeon Hogg meet with our parents regarding housing issues and other issues.
Feedback from Service users
“I went on 25.10.21 to the councillor’s surgery and met Dee who was very welcoming. I waited for he councillor Simeon Hogg but was anxious because I do not think I have ever met a councillor before. Dee and Senia made it so easy, explaining the procedure and reassuring me that the councillors there to help residents “Jane
“Thank you for supporting me and the family and understanding. Thank you for supporting us to meet with the councillors” Caroline
The Gospel Choir Competition launch will now be launched in June 2024 and will be open to all church choirs and community choirs in London.
Look out for more information soon and opening of applications if your choir is interested please express your interest by emailing Dee on [email protected] with the name of the choir and the area.
We are fundrasing for projects and there will be £100 donation per an application.
FEEDBACK FROM SERVICE USERS AND PROFESSIONALS
“Kft have been amazing! Great to have support from people
who understand and do not judge . I saw Lisa and she’s been
great . I highly recommend “
“THE ADVICE WAS GOOD, VERY RELEVANT TO THE SITUATION A GOOD, CAREFUL, UNDERSATNDING, WAS MADE BY DEE SHE HAD TIME TO LISTEN OF A COMPLEX NEED, WOULD RECOMMEND TO OTHERS,THIS IS WHAT I THINK FAMILIES, OTHERS, NEED IN TIMES OF REQUIRING OF SUPPORT, THANKS.”
Thank you for supporting my family through the impossible. I
don’t know what I would have done without your services. Thank you Dee
Thank you Angelique. Thank you to your team, parents and carers.
I Love the name KFT. Keeping Families Together. It brings much needed hope.”
”Although in the infancy of our partnership, we have already witnessed success and have been able to take students off our Pastoral Support Programme – a measure that we put in place prior to exclusion. This has allowed them to resume their academic journey with new perspective and purpose. Students that have gone through the programme are thriving. This is with much thanks to Pastor Ray Poutney (Chairman) and Miss Deepika Makwana (Founder).”