A sanctuary built by women, for women — where trauma-informed care is not an add-on but a culture, and where every woman is met with the understanding she has always deserved.
“Obìnrin ni wúrà ilé” — a woman is the gold of the home.
Yorùbá proverb · The heart of our nameThis shift — from diagnosis to understanding — changes everything. At Wura, we start with curiosity, not judgement.
Wura was born from witnessing the same pattern repeatedly — women experiencing trauma offered support that did not account for gendered harm, power dynamics, or the lasting imprint of violence on mind and body.
Founded by a mental health nurse with lived experience, Wura sits at the intersection of clinical care, community healing, and prevention. Trauma-informed practice is not something we do on top of everything else — it is the lens through which everything is delivered.
Embedded across every interaction, environment, and programme — not a treatment model, a way of being.
Physical and relational safety designed into every space — because without it, healing cannot begin.
Women with lived experience of trauma are not a footnote — they are central to our leadership and care.
We recognise that trauma does not exist apart from race, class, and systemic inequality.
A full-day experience unlike anything else — designed to take women through six distinct stages of release, revelation, and renewal. Held monthly or quarterly, each one a complete journey.
Enter the space. Receive your personal intention for the day. Settle with Wura’s signature plant-based tea and nature weaving — a gentle beginning.
T’ai chi to arrive fully in your body and the moment. Followed by our signature Wura card game — laughter, sisterhood, and ease as you open to the women around you.
Kemetic yoga and sister circle. Stories are shared. The realisation arrives — I am not alone. The ‘me too’ moment that changes everything.
Using primal and somatic release work, women are supported to voice what has never been safe to say and release what the body has held in silence. Not performance. Permission. Roar like a lioness.
Dance meditation (Cheza Roho) to move what has opened. Then sound healing — bowls, vibration, stillness — to settle, integrate, and return to yourself.
A shared meal, prosecco, gifts from the Wura shop, and a send-off worthy of what you have just moved through. You came as you were. You leave renewed.
Our public launch is coming. One day. Every woman welcome.
The Lioness Retreat — open to all women. The official beginning of Wura.
Wura is built on the belief that no woman should be excluded from healing because of money. Every retreat and workshop has its own pricing — and built into each one is a commitment: a portion always goes toward funding a place for a woman who cannot afford to attend.
A portion of every full-price ticket goes directly into the Wura Fund — creating a place for a woman who needs it.
For women who can contribute something but not the full amount. No questions asked. No explanation needed.
Fully funded places for women who cannot afford to attend. Funded by the women who pay it forward.
Wura is one strand of a wider network of organisations rooted in the same philosophy. Idílé — family, lineage, belonging. Grounded in Ubuntu: “I am because we are.”
Women's Wellness Collective
Trauma-informed healing, embodied practices, and community care — built by women, for women.
Wellness Charity
Culturally grounded wellbeing programmes rooted in African village principles.
Community Interest Company
Nature-based education nurturing curiosity, resilience, and connection to the natural world.
“Ubuntu — I am because we are.”
Whether you are ready to begin, or simply want to understand what is available — we are here.
Every offering is woven with intention. A lens of trauma-informed, gender-specific care runs through all of them. Begin wherever feels right for you.
At Wura, trauma-informed practice is not a treatment model or a checklist — it is a culture embedded across everything we do, every environment we create, and every interaction we hold.
Many services offer trauma-informed practice as something added on — a module, a training day, a policy. At Wura, it is the culture that holds everything else.
This means we start every interaction with curiosity rather than judgement — with the question “what has happened to you?” rather than “what’s wrong with you?”
Our spaces — physical and relational — are designed to communicate safety before a word is spoken.
We ask what brought you here, not what is broken in you. Always consent-led, never intrusive.
Women with lived experience of trauma hold leadership, shape our programmes, and guide how Wura grows.
We recognise that trauma does not exist apart from race, poverty, class, and structural harm.
Trauma affects our nervous system’s ability to regulate. The window of tolerance describes the zone in which we can function, feel, and process. All Wura programmes are designed to help women expand and return to this zone.
Research into Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) has established clear links between early trauma and lasting impacts on mental and physical health — including domestic violence, parental mental illness, abuse, neglect, and systemic harms like racism and poverty.
At Wura, we understand that the women who come to us carry histories — not just symptoms. Healing requires understanding what happened, not only what is presenting now.
A recognised cause and consequence of trauma — and one of the most common pathways to women’s mental distress.
Racism, poverty, and marginalisation compound individual trauma — Wura’s care is shaped by this intersectional understanding.
Trauma is stored in the nervous system — which is why embodied healing practices are central to what we offer.
Wura was founded by a mental health nurse who has walked both sides of the care relationship — as a clinician and as a survivor. The same pattern appeared again and again: women experiencing trauma offered support that did not account for gendered harm, power dynamics, or the deep and lasting imprint of violence on the mind and body.
Many women were supported only at crisis point. Others disengaged entirely because services felt unsafe, fragmented, or invalidating. Without gender-specific, trauma-informed care, women remain trapped in cycles of anxiety, depression, PTSD, self-blame, and silence.
Wura exists to change that. Our name comes from the Yorùbá proverb Obìnrin ni wúrà ilé — a woman is the gold of the home. We believe every woman holds that gold within her, even when trauma has buried it deep.
“Obìnrin ni wúrà ilé” — a woman is the gold of the home.
Yorùbá proverb · The heart of our name“A world where no woman heals alone — where gender-specific, trauma-informed care is not a luxury but a right.”
A safe, women-only space where healing can begin without fear or judgement.
Not a single service but an integrated pathway from early support to sustained wellbeing.
Collective healing through sister circles, peer support, and shared understanding.
Piloting locally, expanding through partnerships — built to grow with communities.
Wura is built by women who carry both professional expertise and lived understanding of gendered harm. Each of us brings something distinct — and all of it is rooted in the same belief: that women deserve care that truly sees them.
Founder & Director
I know what it is to be a woman who cannot find her way out.
I was in an abusive marriage. I felt stuck. There were moments when I did not want to be here at all.
I survived. And then I did something with what I survived.
I am Shalom — mental health nurse, trauma-informed practitioner, women’s advocate, and founder of Wura. My clinical career has taken me into some of the most acute spaces in women’s mental health — NHS crisis services, community mental health teams, and on the ground with women navigating the aftermath of violence, abuse, and long-term harm.
Before founding Wura, I served as Head of Women’s Programmes at an NGO working with survivors of Female Genital Mutilation — designing and delivering programmes across the UK, Gambia, and Kenya. I ran community education, gave talks, and held space for women whose bodies had been harmed and whose voices had been silenced. That work showed me something I already knew from the inside: when women are given a space that truly sees them, something shifts. Something that was buried begins to rise.
My clinical approach is rooted in somatic and trauma-informed frameworks — understanding that what the mind carries, the body holds, and that healing must address both. This is why Wura’s work extends beyond the talking therapies — into primal and somatic release, where women are supported to voice what has never been safe to say, and release what the body has held in silence.
Shalom also holds a background in law, having completed the Legal Practice Course, and brings a keen understanding of the legal frameworks surrounding gender-based violence, women’s rights, and access to justice — an awareness that shapes how Wura advocates for the women it serves.
Wura means gold in Yorùbá. I chose that name because I believe it with everything I have. Not as a metaphor. As a truth. What I build here is not separate from what I have lived. It is made of it.
You are wura. You always were.
Greetings of Peace, Wura family — lovely to have you here.
I am Salome — Egyptian yoga instructor (Basu), astrologer with over 10 years of experience, wellness advocate, and Director of Wura.
My work focuses on supporting individuals and communities to develop greater self-awareness, confidence, emotional resilience, and wellbeing — through astrology, Egyptian yoga, breathwork, meditation, natural wellness practices, and community-centred programmes.
I have worked with diverse groups including women, community organisations, and individuals within prison settings, supporting stress management, improved sleep, emotional wellbeing, and personal development. My approach combines ancient wisdom with evidence-informed practices, recognising the positive impact that movement, mindfulness, breathwork, and supportive communities can have on overall wellbeing.
As Director of Wura, I help create trauma-informed spaces built by women, for women — through sister circles, astrology, workshops, sanctuaries, and wellbeing programmes that encourage healing, empowerment, connection, and self-discovery.
There is something I know to be true: it feels good to be seen, witnessed, and understood by your own kind — by other women. And in Wura, that is only a small part of what draws women here. Being seen, acknowledged, supported, and loved by a community of women who share similar experiences is incredibly powerful. There is something deeply healing and affirming about that, and I want us all to have the opportunity to indulge in and experience it.
Wura creates a space where women can show up as they are, feel a sense of belonging, and be reminded that they are not alone.
Director
Director
I believe that many women are longing for something that modern life rarely offers: a voice, a place to belong, and the freedom to express themselves without judgement.
I am Keana — a mother, nature lover, and passionate advocate for creating spaces where women can simply be.
My work has always centred around the healing power of the natural world. With a background in ecology, horticulture, and Forest School education, I have spent years working outdoors — helping people reconnect with themselves, each other, and the land. Alongside this, my journey into herbalism has deepened my understanding of the relationship between people, plants, and wellbeing.
As a woman of Yorùbá heritage, community, culture, and connection are woven through everything I do.
Wura was born from that belief — co-created as a space for women like me. It is an invitation to slow down, reconnect, release what no longer serves us, and celebrate who we truly are. Through nature, shared experiences, and intentional gathering, my hope is that every woman leaves feeling lighter, revitalised, more expressive, and more deeply connected to herself.
I believe healing happens in nature, with community, and in truly connecting to ourselves. My role is simply to help hold that space.
Whether you are a professional, a community worker, a friend, or a woman referring herself — this pathway is open. All referrals are received with care and complete confidentiality.
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We aim to respond within 3 working days. In an emergency, always call 999.
We will review this referral with care and be in touch within 3 working days.
If circumstances become urgent, please contact emergency services on 999 or the Samaritans on 116 123.
Whether you have a question, want to explore a partnership, or simply need to reach us — you are welcome. Every enquiry is handled with care and confidentiality.
If you are in crisis right now:
Please call the Samaritans on 116 123 (free, 24/7), text SHOUT to 85258, or call the National Domestic Violence Helpline on 0808 2000 247. For immediate danger, call 999.