Projects supporting domestic abuse survivors in Suffolk and Essex have received a funding boost of nearly £700,000 from the government, it has been announced.

Colchester Borough Council has been awarded £398,643 from the government’s domestic abuse fund, which will go to the Colchester and Tendring Women’s Aid, Open Road and Changing Pathways charities.

Suffolk County Council has received £270,000, with Lowestoft Refuge (Orwell Housing), Ipswich Refuge (Lighthouse Women’s Aid), Bury St Edmunds Refuge (Bury Women’s Aid) and the Anglia Care Trust set to benefit from the funding.

The money will provide new beds in refuges and other safe accommodation, access to education, and tailored employment and life skills guidance as survivors move towards building a safe and healthy future for themselves and their children – free from domestic abuse.

Heather Wheeler MP, housing minister, said: “Those who have survived domestic abuse will have had their lives, and the lives of their families, shattered.

“It is our duty to ensure survivors can seek help by providing the support they need to restart their lives.

“Through providing specialist accommodation and access to employment, this fund will make sure councils and charities across the east of England can provide a strong safety net for anyone facing the threat of abuse in their own home.”

The funding for Suffolk and Essex is part of a £2.8million allocation across the eastern region announced today.