Vesta SFS CIC (formerly Polish Domestic Violence Helpline) has been a pioneer organisation for specialist domestic abuse support for the Polish community in England and Wales. Over the past ten years, we have offered specialist support to over 2700 Polish people affected by domestic abuse, poor mental health and parenting difficulties. People who often had nowhere else to turn for help.

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The Polish Domestic Violence Helpline (PDVH) has supported Polish victims of domestic violence since 2014. We set up the first UK-wide helpline specifically for Polish people who have experienced domestic abuse. It was founded by Ewa Wilcock, who developed it initially as a project within a local charity, Cheshire Without Abuse. National interest in the helpline grew quickly, and in 2015, we registered as a charitable incorporated organisation and developed our services independently. Apart from the helpline, we offered telephone counselling and a domestic abuse recovery programme for Polish women, Gateway. In 2017, we were one of the shortlisted finalists for the prestigious Diversity Award in the gender category, which was a great recognition of our work for Polish victims of domestic violence. 

There was a growing demand for our services, and we decided to change how we operate to continue providing invaluable support to Polish families. In September 2018, we registered Vesta - Specialist Family Support CIC, our new name and organisation. We extended our support offer to respond to the growing needs of our clients. We supported families affected by domestic abuse through specialist courses for victims and perpetrators. We also focused on improving parenting skills and the general well-being of Polish families; we developed and offered parenting courses and counselling with Polish-speaking specialists. We supported many local authorities and organisations across England and Wales with making significant progress in helping their Polish clients through our specialist interventions and projects.

We also designed and offered courses for British professionals that helped them explore the issues affecting the lives of Polish people living in the UK, so they could recognise them and respond confidently when supporting Polish clients in their professional roles. 

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We have been a leading organisation offering expert advice, resources, and training on specific issues affecting the Polish community. We raised awareness of our clients' needs through courses, conferences, blogs, consultancy, and reports.

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​We've made a difficult decision to close our organisation on 30 June 2025.