WOMEN'S refuges in Worcester are calling for the public to donate their old mobile phones so that domestic abuse survivors can use them – with one victim saying she "had nothing" when she fled her attacker.

When victims of domestic abuse flee from an abusive relationship, they often have to give up their mobiles phones in order to prevent their ex from finding them.

With many victims left penniless by their abuser, they often can't afford a new phone and thus can end up feeling isolated.

Now, West Mercia Women's Aid is appealing to the public in Worcester to donate their old phones, restored to factory settings and with its charger, as well as new and unused SIM cards.

Charlotte Woodward, from West Mercia Women's Aid, said: "Women come to us in very chaotic situations. Phones often get left behind in the chaos. Many of their phones have tracking devices. Often their phones have been taken away from them. It's very common for abusers to not allow victims to have a phone because it's part of isolation."

One domestic abuse survivor, aged 42, told the Worcester News that she had nothing with her when she fled with her daughter from her violent and controlling husband.

"I didn’t have any clothes or gifts people had bought me," she said. "I still don’t have any of my mother’s jewellery or things from my daughter's christening, but I don’t care because I have my life. You can buy all these other things."

She was in an abusive marriage between 2003 and 2006 during which time she had a daughter, who is now 14.

"The abuse was mainly psychological and financial," she said. "My ex-husband was very controlling. We had two cars and he would use one so it had no petrol left in it then he would take the other, so I was trapped at home with the baby and I was unable to go anywhere.

"I was financially dependent on him so he would control my spending, and if I needed to buy something he would ask 'what have you spent it on?'

"He would check the dishwasher and washing machine when he got home and if it was full of clean dishes he would ask why I hadn’t emptied it, if it was full of dirty things he would say that it was unhygienic – if it was empty then it meant I hadn’t eaten. It was continuous belittling. "

"I suffered with postnatal depression and he would put my medication out of reach, taking advantage of the fact that I'm 5ft5 and he is around 6ft. "

Her husband threw glasses and remote controls at her and would push and shove her, but never left bruises or cuts.

"I almost wished he would hit me and leave bruise because then at least then I could go to the police," she said.

"He would threaten me with a punch, he'd throw his fist at me but then not actually do it, his fist would only tap my head. He was aware enough to not do it."

She added: "They turn you into this weak, small person, like a mouse, someone with no get up and go or confidence, you feel helpless. Essentially, it's bullying someone to death. "

She says that despite police now being much better at dealing with the issues after working with Women's Aid who are "fantastic," public attitudes have a long way to go.

"Domestic abuse is a nasty subject that people don’t want to talk about," she said. "People are happy to talk about animals and children, with all the adverts on TV, but not about this, even though two women a week are killed fleeing abuse. We never hear about any of them. "

She added: "People still ask 'Why didn’t you leave him?' They don’t realise that when someone is financially and emotionally in control of you, it can be impossible."

Women's Aid's freedom program helped her by teaching her and other women in a group what a dominator is, and helped them understand how abusers' "heads work."

She learned that her husband was classed as a 'jailer' which is someone who tries to isolate their partner and alienate them from their friends and family.

She says the first step is realising that it is not your fault and that you can recover.

"I consider myself to be a strong and active part of the community now," she said. "I feel proud of myself and can look in the mirror and smile, whereas before I would have cried."

To donate your mobile phone to a women's shelter, contact info@westmerciawomensaid.org or 01432 356146, or there is a donation point at County Hall in the city.