One True Voice (OTV) was founded in 2010 by Somali women to support Somali girls and women. We help Somali women of all ages to understand, cope with and resolve the challenges they face in British and Somali society.
We are based in Islington, London. Our work is primarily in the UK but we also have links to Somalia. There are about 100,000 Somali women living in the UK, of whom about 80,000 live in London.
Many Somali girls and women in the UK suffer from the disadvantages of poor education, lack of employment prospects, discrimination and oppression by men. OTV provides training, counselling and advocacy for girls and women, with the aim of making them more self-confident and capable of better integration into society.
We offer personal counselling and support. We do not dictate solutions. We assist the users of OTV’s services to arrive at their own decisions in their own time.
As Somali women ourselves, we understand the difficulties that Somali girls and women face. We offer practical, culturally-sensitive advice.
We provide support and guidance for both individuals and groups.
We operate from small premises in Islington, London, in the heart of the Somali community. We run daily drop-in sessions which are open to all. Our other activities include:
Before OTV started women from the local community would meet in Aisha's front room. Over tea and snacks these women would share their experiences and get help from knowledgeable women in the community. This shared pool of advice soon outgrew the living rooms of the local women and arrangements were made for it to be relocated to the Andover Estate Community centre.
One True Voice was established to provide a voice and representation to Somali Women in the Finsbury Park area. Faced with systematic prejudice and discrimination at home and in the workplace local Somali women would gather in the front room of local community leaders to work together for help and guidance. Over time this outgrew the living room of community aunties and office space was leased out of the Andover Estate Community Centre which offers easy access to the community across the area. Today the service is extended to women and men from all marginalised backgrounds seeking help and support with a focus on providing reliable confidential support for the Somali community in particular.
The BME community in Finsbury Park is the largest in the borough with 65,610 people from BME backgrounds. In 2019 Finsbury Park was found to be the most deprived area in Islington. 20% of people living in Finsbury Park live in Poverty and 83% in receipt of state benefits. Finsbury Park has one of the highest crime rates in London with 373 victims of crime in 2019 alone. As reported in the Guardian in March 2009, County Lines Drug gangs are known to operate out of the area and continue to have a detrimental effect on the community.
Every year we are approached by 950 people seeking advice. Typically, with problems relating to social isolation or financial problems but also with regards to more specific problems affecting the Somali community. We run an advice and advocacy service in the area reaching out to 800 people helping lift them from poverty and provide them with the tools they need to engage with the community. Our advisors are available 24 hours a week helping those who visit our offices, helping over the phone and travelling to the homes of clients who have difficulty travelling.
We encourage independence, developing writing and communication skills to help our residents find their independence through employment. We also work on issues directly relating to our community, raising awareness on GBV (Gender Based Violence) and FGM (Female Genital Mutilation), forced marriages and girl gangs. We also work on increasing mental health awareness by signposting mental health services in the borough while also working with the police and local authorities on combating hate crime in the neighbourhood. We have seen increased participation rates in our local activities helped by our Martial art project has helped women regain the confidence to engage in public with their local community while helping them to defend themselves from those who want to remove their hijabs by force. The hijab can be restrictive and makes the women seem ideal easy prey. This program has resulted in a decrease in isolation, an increase in confidence has increased social inclusion within the community.