Surviving to Thriving: Strengthening Complex Trauma Support in Brixton & Peckham

Being a victim of complex trauma or abuse is already hard.

When you are Black and marginalised, the barriers to recovery multiply. Cultural stigma, racial bias in services, and a lack of culturally competent support often leave people isolated, misdiagnosed, or completely overlooked.

Surviving Universal UK (SUUK) is a Black-led, survivor-run community interest company founded in South London to change that. We provide trauma-informed support, advocacy and education for people rebuilding their lives after coercive control, abuse or exploitation.

Through Surviving to Thriving: Strengthening Complex Trauma Support in Brixton & Peckham, we will scale our existing work so that local residents can access timely, safe and culturally aware help when they need it most.

What the project will deliver

1. People Power:
2. • Fund two part-time roles – a Community Development & Operations Lead and an Outreach & Referral Worker.
3. • These posts will coordinate partnerships, manage safeguarding, handle incoming referrals, and ensure residents receive appropriate follow-up support.
4. Digital & Operational Strengthening:
5. • Build a secure referral portal and professional email domain.
6. • Refresh our website with an accessible “Support Hub” where people in Brixton and Peckham can find trauma resources, self-help guides and referral forms.
7. Local Visibility:
8. • Run an awareness campaign placing posters, flyers and QR cards in barbershops, salons, cafés and community venues.
9. • Normalise conversations about trauma and direct people to safe, local help.
10. Sustainability & Partnerships:
11. • Host a partner round-table with local health and wellbeing organisations.
12. • Commission external evaluation and planning support to embed long-term learning.

Budget Summary – £30,000

Community Development & Operations Lead – £11,000

(Coordination, partnerships, evaluation – 0.5 FTE)

Outreach & Referral Worker – £6,000

(Referrals, admin, engagement – 0.4 FTE)

Digital Infrastructure – £5,000

(Referral system, email domain, software)

Website & Support Hub – £3,000

(Design, build, accessibility testing)

Awareness Campaign – £4,000

(Posters, placements, QR-cards, content)

Training & Supervision – £1,000

(Trauma-informed CPD and safeguarding refreshers)

Total: £30,000

Who the project supports

Residents of Brixton (Lambeth) and Peckham (Southwark), particularly:

• Black and Brown adults living with complex trauma

• People on low incomes or insecure housing/status

• Carers and parents supporting traumatised family members

• LGBTQ+ survivors and those with multiple health needs

Difference it will make

• More than 300 local residents will learn about and access trauma support.
• SUUK will gain stable staffing, digital systems and safeguarding capacity.
• Community spaces will become gateways to wellbeing, not barriers.
• Black-led trauma recovery work will have a visible, lasting base in Brixton and Peckham.

Why it will succeed

SUUK already supports survivors across South London and is trusted for its lived-experience leadership. This funding strengthens proven work, not a new experiment. By investing in people, systems and visibility, it ensures that when someone is suffering in silence, they can finally find help close to home.