Some of the most powerful work happens when the right people find each other. The IWC digital community exists not just as a network, but as a space where expertise, experience, and shared values can meet, and where connections made online become collaborations that create real change.
The members featured here came together through IWC and went on to do work that none of them would have done alone. Their stories are shared to show you what becomes possible when you look beyond your immediate circle and trust that the community around you holds knowledge, perspective, and courage worth seeking out.
If you have been wondering whether to reach out to a fellow member, to propose a project, or simply to begin a conversation, let this be your prompt.
CASE STUDY: The CPS Pre-Trial Therapy Guidelines
Dorothy Hodgkinson, Tayba Azim, and Erene Hadjiioannou
When Dorothy Hodgkinson, Tayba Azim, and Erene Hadjiioannou were brought together through IWC in 2019, the task was clear: to form a steering group and contribute a specialist response to the Crown Prosecution Service consultation on pre-trial therapy guidelines that had, for two decades, placed survivors of sexual and domestic violence in an impossible position. What none of them could have fully anticipated was what the collaboration would become.
The three brought distinctly different expertise. Dorothy draws on over a decade as an Independent Advocate with direct experience of how survivors’ histories are used and misused within legal proceedings. Erene is an Integrative Psychotherapist, author, and activist with specialist knowledge in supporting survivors of sexual violence of any gender. Tayba is an Integrative Psychotherapist and Mizan Practitioner, whose expertise in trauma and deep knowledge of women’s rights in Islam, including the separation of cultural and spiritual abuse from Quranic teaching, ensured the group could speak to survivors the guidelines had never considered.
Together they liaised with legal professionals such as Stephen Littlewood of KBW Chambers (an integral member of the team), fellow therapists, and survivors before submitting their response to the CPS public consultation in November 2020. Their submission was precise about what the guidelines failed to do: they did not account for the diversity of who survivors are, meaning the criminal justice system would continue to be predominantly accessible to white, cisgender, secular, non-disabled, and heterosexual survivors. They called for change within both the criminal justice and mental health systems, and between them.
In May 2022, the CPS issued revised guidelines replacing the 2002 framework. The clause preventing survivors from speaking about their experiences in therapy was removed, and the updated guidance stated explicitly that there are no circumstances in which access to therapy should be delayed. It was meaningful progress. Gaps remain, including around the use of therapy notes and the absence of mandatory training for therapists working pre-trial, and the group’s work continues.
As for the collaboration itself, its significance has extended well beyond the consultation.
Tayba reflects:
“What began as a task has become a circle of friendship and collective action. This partnership has also expanded my own path, giving me the confidence to speak at conferences and to train other organisations.”
Dorothy adds:
“I have valued being able to address complex and heartrending issues within the safety of a collaboration that has become close, supportive friendship. Bearing witness to the very varied experiences we each brought to this work was emotionally challenging but so worthwhile, enabling us to present a detailed, coherent case for change.”
And in Erene’s words:
“Collaboration is proof that the right people are out there, you just need to be brave and go looking for them. I’ve valued the experience of holding each other up when pushing for change is intimidating, along with sharing expertise.”
The steering group still meets, the friendship is profound, and the work goes on.
