'You can lose your identity when you become a mum'

A charity CEO says she can now "breathe again" after getting a funding boost of £260,000 for the women's group she founded 10 years ago after feeling "written off'"as a single mum.

Kim Trotter's Future Female Society (FFS) - a community interest company in Ipswich - is getting a three-year grant from The National Lottery Community Fund to support its work helping women and girls achieve their aspirations.

The FFS was inspired by Trotter feeling "very written off, [and] judged," after becoming a mother at 19.

"You can lose your identity when you become a mother, and this project is about helping women get back to who they are and what they want to do with their lives," she said.

The FFS currently runs three main projects:

• More Than Mum: A 10-week personal development programme supporting women to explore their identity, confidence and aspirations beyond their role as mothers

• Woman2Woman Radio: A project for migrant and refugee women to share experiences, develop skills, build connections and have their voices heard

• Girls Where You AT?: A project giving opportunities for girls to come together, develop their ideas and take positive action within their communities

Speaking about challenges of fundraising on BBC Radio Suffolk, Kim Trotter said: "In the 10 years that we've run, we've never had multi-year funding.

"We're constantly going, 'we're running out of money for this project; where can we find that?'

"And sometimes those projects have stopped. More Than Mum - we haven't run one for over two years. Woman2Woman Radio has intermittently stopped...

"So the lottery funding for three years means we can stop worrying about that for a minute. Honestly, I feel I can breathe again," she added.

Emma Parsons now works as the group's events and marketing coordinator, but started as a participant on the More Than Mum programme.

She said: "The early years of motherhood were quite difficult for me.

"I struggled with my mental health. I had a traumatic birth with my son and then I was juggling being a single mum, was working... got made redundant, and my son started school.

"I found myself feeling quite isolated and probably a little bit lost.

"The More Than Mum project really helped me find myself again and that I had skills and experience that I could actually use elsewhere."

The FFS is celebrating its 10 year anniversary at The Hold in Ipswich on Saturday October 3 with a party which begins at midday.

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