Our journey to now

So, I write this on an ANBU admin morning, on top of a rather intimidating to-do list, I’ve reminded myself to tools down, stop everything, and reflect on the last couple of years since bringing ANBU to the UK. Reflect on the early duty-bound whirlwind it was, to the evolved, sensitively crafted collective it is today. We do this in preparation of embarking on what is a personal milestone for us, to deliver survivor support services to the Tamil community.

In the beginning, we really didn’t know if ANBU would have the same reception in the UK as Canada. We didn’t know if Tamil culture could live side by side with progressive and transformative thinking. We didn’t know if survivors would want a space that was so embedded in the Tamil community. However time and time again, we’ve been shown that this is something quite different and ever evolving, and perhaps, there’ll never really be definitive answers to these questions.

Whilst it’s not been easy, we understand more deeply the complexity of being a survivor in the Tamil community and how these concerns are still prominent today as they've ever been, impacting mental health, quality of life and wellbeing in the present.

This has only fortified our own ANBU UK beliefs in why we exist and our passion to support survivors and the community, strengthening our ANBU UK core values; to think and act with integrity, to embrace growth and to be catalyst for transformative thinking amongst other important core values we hold.

We'll be sharing our plans open to all survivors who are ready and looking for support within a safe, non-judgemental and confidential space. There will be a choice of intervention, so you decide on what support you want and you feel ready for, over an 8-week period. We hope to run more of these in the future too for anyone not ready for it just yet. Head over to our Support and Wellbeing page for more information.

We are here for you, and now, for the first time, hope to be a part of your journey.

Vanajah x vanajah@anbu.org.uk