11.06.2025 / Press releases / Solace

Crisis at Solace Women’s Aid: Barnet and Tower Hamlets Support Workers set to strike

11 June

• Solace Women’s Aid workers in Barnet have opened a strike ballot in response to unmanageable workloads and broken promises by the charity.
  
  
• Staff, represented by United Voices of the World (UVW), are calling for reduced caseloads, the recruitment of additional staff, and voluntary recognition of their union.
  
  
• Conditions have been described as “inhumane,” with dangerously high caseloads and frontline staff denied a voice in decisions affecting their wellbeing.
  
  
• Workers say Solace Women’s Aid has reneged on a previous agreement to recognise UVW, made during a dispute in Tower Hamlets earlier this year which saw workers vote to take indefinite strike action.
  
  
• Tower Hamlets workers are also poised to take strike action, with their own ballot still live, making this a growing, multi-site dispute.
  

Workers at the Barnet Solace Advocacy and Support Service (SASS), frontline advocates for survivors of gender-based violence, have opened a strike ballot amidst growing frustration over severe overwork and broken promises by Solace Women’s Aid leadership. 

This is the second-strike ballot Solace has faced this year — a highly unusual occurrence in the VAWG sector, where strike action is incredibly rare.

This action follows months of efforts to resolve issues both informally and through last minute facilitated talks.

The workers, members of United Voices of the World (UVW), are calling for

1. A reduction and cap on caseloads, which currently see some managing over 20 complex and distressing cases at any given time —conditions they describe as “exploitative”.
   
2. The hiring of a Duty or Peripatetic Independent Domestic Violence Advocate (IDVA) to ensure adequate cover and continuity of care.
   
3. Formal recognition of their union UVW for collective bargaining purposes.

Despite entering talks in good faith, supported by ACAS, workers say they were met with evasive responses and a refusal to honour commitments made during a dispute in Tower Hamlets, where Solace had agreed to voluntarily recognise UVW.

Barnet SASS workers said:

“This is not just about one worker, but what appears to be a broader pattern of neglect impacting the entire team. Many of us are expected to meet unrealistic service standards and work under intense pressure, which is taking a toll on our wellbeing. Staff often feel unsupported, and there are serious concerns about the lack of a psychologically informed management approach. In our view, management has not adequately addressed these issues or acknowledged the time-consuming nature of our additional duties. We are calling for a healthier work environment—for ourselves and for the survivors we support—and a real say at work through our union, UVW.”

A Tower Hamlets Solace worker who wishes to remain anonymous said:

“Our dispute earlier this year helped save both jobs and a vital service in Tower Hamlets. It took the threat of indefinite strike action for Solace to step up—securing the funding and agreeing to recognise our union, UVW. Now they’ve gone back on that, and it feels like a complete betrayal. Every day, we advocate for the voices of women and survivors of domestic abuse—yet we’re being told we don’t deserve a voice at work ourselves. We’re gutted to be forced into another dispute, but if Solace won’t honour agreements, what choice do we have as workers other than to strike?”

Isabel Cortés, UVW Assistant General Secretary said: 

“Solace’s refusal to follow through on a previously agreed voluntary recognition request has shocked and disheartened the workers that every day advocate for women’s voices . Despite every opportunity to engage meaningfully, they have chosen to deny their workforce a voice at work. Our members are left with no alternative but to take industrial action. It is concerning that many workers feel unable to speak openly which raises important questions about the environment they are working in.”

This live dispute now spans both the Barnet and Tower Hamlets Solace teams—two critical sites in the UK’s fight against gender-based violence. The workers stress that the lack of union recognition and dangerously high caseloads not only endangers staff welfare but undermines the quality of care for survivors.

For more information contact the UVW comms team.

Isabel: 07706 987443

Cristina: 07548 759340

E-mail: comms@uvwunion.org.uk   

Notes for editors

United Voices of the World is an anti-racist, member-led, direct action, campaigning trade union and we exist to support and empower the most vulnerable groups of precarious, low-paid, and predominantly BAME and migrant workers in the UK. We fight the bosses through direct action on the streets and through the courts and demand that all members receive at least the London Living Wage, full pay, sick pay, dignity, equality, and respect.

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