The support from Gwynt y Mor Investment Fund to Stepping Stones North Wales in enabling the purchase of 20 Safety/protection fobs has made a real difference to our staff, counsellors, supervisors, and clients. Stepping Stones provides professional counselling and support to adult survivors of sexual abuse in childhood and the effects of the trauma of abuse they suffer. During the COVID crisis our charity needed to quickly adapt the way we offered our services, our normal face to face support throughout the six counties of North Wales had to stop. The fobs provide a lifeline of protection and safety to counsellors and staff who are lone working in buildings that during COVID have had little if any normal support staff, enabling individuals to have a direct link to a Solo Protect support system, where they can access help, 24hrs a day through the press of a button on their personal safety fobs. Each personal fob carries details of the person using the fob, area they are working in, any medical information to be aware of and an escalation contact in the case of an emergency. The difference in being able to have access to emergency medical assistance, including a “man down response” in a case of a slip trip or fall also access to a quick response and safety support during a traumatic client episode and a listening ear when someone is on their own in a building has proved invaluable. All the Stepping Stones Team say they now feel safe and supported, less isolated and less anxious.   The fobs will continue to provide safety and protection now and well into the future enabling consistent, continuous access and vital support to staff, counsellors, volunteers and the survivors we support as we carry on the vital work in our community. Thank you.