Two charities in Cornwall which specialise in helping survivors of sexual abuse and domestic violence have received a boost after legal experts provided a donation to support their specialist work.

Cornwall Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre (CRASAC) and Children Linked to and Experiencing Abusive Relationships (CLEAR), are set to use the vital funds from national law firm Irwin Mitchell to create an improved waiting area for service users who visit their main base.

In addition, Irwin Mitchell’s lawyers are providing further support to the charities by holding a free legal clinic three times a year to offer advice to sexual abuse survivors on a range of different issues.

Tom Fletcher, a lawyer at the firm, specialises in providing advice and support to survivors of abuse and helping them gain justice regarding the ordeals they have faced.

He said: “Irwin Mitchell has always placed a great emphasis on supporting a range of causes across the UK and these charities carry out hugely important work to ensure that those affected by abuse can ultimately get the support they need to try and move forward with their lives.

“As soon as we heard about their plans to create an improved waiting area we were keen to lend a hand and we also hope that our free legal clinics will prove useful to those who use the service.

“Charities like CRASAC and CLEAR ensure that survivors of abuse do not suffer in silence and we are delighted to support their vital work.”

CRASAC and CLEAR merged earlier this year to create one organisation where people of all ages and sex can seek help and advice to tackle the impact of domestic abuse and sexual violence.

Simon Carpenter, CEO at CRASAC and CLEAR, said: “It can incredibly difficult for survivors of abuse to come forward and seek support so we are always working to develop our services.

“This donation from Irwin Mitchell will be a huge help as we look to create a pleasant waiting area and we are excited at the prospect of linking with the lawyers for legal clinics too.

“It is fantastic to see an organisation like Irwin Mitchell provide this level of support and we are very grateful to them.”