The Loving Me Service
Nominee Profile
Location: Lancashire
Loving Me is a pioneering specialist domestic abuse and sexual violence service supporting transgender, non-binary and gender-diverse people across England. Created in response to the severe lack of safe and inclusive support available to trans+ survivors, Loving Me provides trauma-informed advocacy, emotional support, housing assistance, safety planning and specialist accommodation designed specifically around the needs of trans and non-binary people.
In 2025, Loving Me opened the UK’s first dedicated domestic abuse refuge for transgender and non-binary survivors — a landmark achievement in inclusive support provision. The refuge was created to address the significant barriers many trans people face when fleeing abuse, including discrimination, exclusion and fear of accessing mainstream accommodation services. This groundbreaking project has created a genuinely safe space where survivors can rebuild their lives with dignity, respect and specialist support.
The organisation exists because trans and non-binary people experience disproportionately high levels of domestic abuse, coercive control and sexual violence, while often facing discrimination or retraumatisation when seeking help. Loving Me changes that reality by creating spaces where people feel safe, respected and genuinely understood.
What makes Loving Me exceptional is its “by and for” approach. The organisation is led by people with lived experience and specialist expertise, ensuring support is compassionate, empowering and rooted in understanding. Survivors are supported through every stage of their journey, from crisis intervention and emergency accommodation to court advocacy, recovery and rebuilding independence.
Alongside frontline support, Loving Me is driving wider systemic change by delivering trans-inclusive training to organisations and professionals across the domestic abuse sector. Their work improves understanding of the barriers faced by trans survivors and promotes safer, more inclusive practice nationally.
Loving Me’s impact extends far beyond the number of people supported. The organisation has become a lifeline for survivors who previously felt invisible, isolated or unsafe seeking help. Through advocacy, inclusion and compassion, Loving Me empowers people to reclaim safety, confidence and hope.
By opening the UK’s first refuge for trans and non-binary survivors while continuing to challenge inequality and improve systems, Loving Me embodies the values of equality, diversity and social justice.
In 2025, Loving Me opened the UK’s first dedicated domestic abuse refuge for transgender and non-binary survivors — a landmark achievement in inclusive support provision. The refuge was created to address the significant barriers many trans people face when fleeing abuse, including discrimination, exclusion and fear of accessing mainstream accommodation services. This groundbreaking project has created a genuinely safe space where survivors can rebuild their lives with dignity, respect and specialist support.
The organisation exists because trans and non-binary people experience disproportionately high levels of domestic abuse, coercive control and sexual violence, while often facing discrimination or retraumatisation when seeking help. Loving Me changes that reality by creating spaces where people feel safe, respected and genuinely understood.
What makes Loving Me exceptional is its “by and for” approach. The organisation is led by people with lived experience and specialist expertise, ensuring support is compassionate, empowering and rooted in understanding. Survivors are supported through every stage of their journey, from crisis intervention and emergency accommodation to court advocacy, recovery and rebuilding independence.
Alongside frontline support, Loving Me is driving wider systemic change by delivering trans-inclusive training to organisations and professionals across the domestic abuse sector. Their work improves understanding of the barriers faced by trans survivors and promotes safer, more inclusive practice nationally.
Loving Me’s impact extends far beyond the number of people supported. The organisation has become a lifeline for survivors who previously felt invisible, isolated or unsafe seeking help. Through advocacy, inclusion and compassion, Loving Me empowers people to reclaim safety, confidence and hope.
By opening the UK’s first refuge for trans and non-binary survivors while continuing to challenge inequality and improve systems, Loving Me embodies the values of equality, diversity and social justice.