At Women's Community Matters, the objective is to help any woman get the help they need, even if they were referred to the program as an offender and not a victim.
Development worker Katy Scott explained that there is usually a three in 10 ratio of offenders to victims in each group and one of the youngest members of the group was 18-year-old Ashton Smith from Barrow.
Miss Smith was referred to the group by the Cumbria Youth Offending Service. She said: "Being part of the community group has changed everything for me – friendship-wise, relationship-wise and family-wise. I'm getting along with my mum and dad better and my boyfriend better, it has changed the way I think.
"I used to have so much trouble at home, I suffered with my weight. Anorexia and bulimia and I was self-harming a lot too. Things in my life were not going well, it was very difficult.
"If I could give other young girls any advice it would be simple. Keep your head up, nothing is the end of the world even though it may seem like that at the time, keep smiling and try not to be afraid of other people.
"Coming here has helped with my self-harming and my eating. I used to sit and watch people eat and then eat food myself and feel guilty but being here has made me feel beautiful. I don't care as much now if people call me fat or ugly."
Miss Smith is now pregnant with her first child and is expecting him in August, along with another girl from the group. She said: "I am so excited to welcoming my son in to the world, it has given me something to look forward to and stay positive for.
"Coming here to the centre, well I can't describe how helpful it has been to me. When I first came it was exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time. The first week I was really scared but by the second week I started to relax and by the third week I had made loads of friends. The women here have become like my family, it's like having lots of sisters to help you out."
READ MORE: Barrow women turn their lives around with help from pioneering project
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