TO mark International Women’s Day, women’s organisation Blackburn Soroptimists handed over gifts to a local domestic abuse and forced marriage support group.

The Soroptimists invited service providers, and users, from Humraaz to speak at the March club meeting, and receive toiletries, food and clothing collected by club members.

Humraaz is a project in Blackburn that offers help to black and minority ethnic women, and their children, at risk of, or currently experiencing, domestic abuse, or forced marriage.

Support workers help the women access medical services, accompany them to appointments, interpret for them, and give them life skills support.

Soroptimist Marie Blacktop said: “One of the workers was helping a single woman to decorate her new home, and helped her to choose paper and paste. On her return, the room was beautiful. The woman said she had not used any of the paste because she hadn’t understood the ratio of paste to water but, instead, made her own from chapatti flour, which had worked perfectly!”