From Monday 2 November 2026, Ahimsa has become part of First Light. Ahimsa's services carry on under the Ahimsa name, delivered by the same team, with no break in support for anyone currently working with us.
At a glance
Services continue as normal. The High Risk High Harm behaviour change service (part of IDASP), the Ahimsa Youth Service and Ahimsa's CAPVA work all carry on without interruption.
The delivery team is transferring. All of Ahimsa's delivery team move across to First Light, so people keep the same worker and the same relationships.
Contact details stay the same. Ahimsa's phone number, email address and website remain in use.
The integrated model stays in place. Ahimsa's behaviour change work continues alongside support for partners and ex-partners from First Light's Independent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs), delivered separately through IDASP.
More than thirty-five years of making change possible
Since 1990, Ahimsa has specialised in behaviour change, working with people who cause harm in their relationships and families. Its work has always focused on making change possible while keeping the safety of victim-survivors and children at the centre. Ahimsa has held Respect accreditation for many years, and its practice and expertise are widely respected across the sector.
That work now spans prevention through to the highest-risk cases. The Ahimsa Youth Service's Healthy Relationship Advocates meet young people aged 16 to 25 where they are, in the community, online, or at school or college, helping them build healthier relationships before harmful patterns take hold. At the other end, Ahimsa's High Risk High Harm service works weekly, one to one, for six months with the people posing the greatest danger in the city, in line with the Respect Standard for intensive case management. Ahimsa had built four years of this practice in Plymouth before IDASP launched.
The evidence for this approach is strong. The largest UK evaluation of a high-harm perpetrator intervention, by the University of Bristol, found targeted work with high-harm perpetrators cut physical abuse by 82% and sexual abuse by 88%, with changes lasting more than a year after the work ended (Hester et al., 2020).
Already working side by side
Ahimsa and First Light have been working as one team on the ground since April 2026, as partners in the Integrated Domestic Abuse Service Plymouth (IDASP), alongside Bridges Outcomes Partnerships, and commissioned by Plymouth City Council. IDASP is the first fully integrated domestic abuse service the council has commissioned and funded.
In practice, every person in Ahimsa's High Risk High Harm service has a partner or ex-partner who is offered support from a First Light Independent Domestic Violence Adviser (IDVA). Behaviour change workers and IDVAs share information within agreed protocols to assess and manage risk together. Victim-survivor safety drives every decision. Joining First Light builds on a way of working that is already proving itself.
What this means
Ahimsa's work continues under the Ahimsa name as a project within First Light, so the reputation and relationships built over three decades carry on. The same team continues to deliver the work, led by Jenny Adjene, formerly Chief Executive of Ahimsa and now Director of Healthy Relationships and Behaviour Change at First Light. Being part of a larger organisation gives the work a more secure footing and room to grow, in Plymouth and across First Light's wider area over time.
First Light is an independent specialist charity working with people affected by domestic abuse and sexual violence across Devon, Cornwall, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire. Each year it supports thousands of adults, children and young people through independent domestic and sexual violence advocacy, counselling, Sexual Assault Referral Centres and Safe Spaces, its national service for survivors of church-related abuse. In Plymouth, First Light is the victim-survivor partner in IDASP. Prevention and early intervention have long been part of its mission, so Ahimsa's work fits naturally within it.
Bringing the two organisations together means work with victim-survivors and work with those who cause harm sit side by side. That gives a much stronger chance of ending abuse, not only responding to it.
The safety of victim-survivors remains the priority throughout. Ahimsa's work with people who cause harm continues to be delivered by its own specialist team, with clear safeguards around confidentiality and information sharing in line with national standards.
In their words
Lyn Gooding, Chief Executive, First Light
"For years we have supported victim-survivors across the South West knowing that abuse will only end when we also work with the people who cause it. Ahimsa has led that work with skill and courage for more than three decades. Since April, our teams have shown through IDASP what a whole-family response can do. Bringing Ahimsa into First Light makes that partnership permanent, and I'm proud to welcome Jenny and the team."
Jenny Adjene, Director of Healthy Relationships and Behaviour Change, First Light:
"This is a really positive step for Ahimsa and for the people we work with. Ahimsa has done important work to address domestic abuse at the source in Plymouth for over thirty years, and joining First Light means that work has a secure future and real room to grow. I'm looking forward to building on it with colleagues at First Light, and with all the partners who have worked alongside us for so long."
How to access support or make a referral
Ahimsa Youth Service (ages 16 to 25). For young people worried about how they behave in a relationship or towards their parents or carers. Young people can get in touch directly, and any professional working with a young person can refer. Call 01752 213535 or visit ahimsa.org.uk/ahimsa-youth-service.
High Risk High Harm behaviour change (IDASP). Intensive one-to-one work with people identified through MARAC and MATAC as posing the highest risk. Referrals come through MARAC, police, probation and other agencies, with consent. There is no self-referral. Call 01752 213535 or email enquiries@ahimsa.org.uk.
CAPVA pilot. Ahimsa is also delivering a time-limited pilot with children and families where a child, aged 8 to 15, is using harmful behaviour towards parents or carers. Referrals come through an agreed partnership route.
Support for anyone experiencing domestic abuse in Plymouth. Contact First Light through IDASP on 01752 429 736 or request support online.
Adults worried about their own behaviour. The Respect Phoneline offers free, confidential advice on 0808 802 4040.If you or anyone in your family is in danger right now, call 999.
Frequently asked questions
I'm currently working with Ahimsa. Will anything change for me?
No. You keep the same worker and your sessions continue as planned. Your worker will talk you through the change at your next session.
Are referral routes or contact details changing?
No. Use the same contact details as before: 01752 213535, enquiries@ahimsa.org.uk and www.ahimsa.org.uk.
Will people keep the same worker?
Yes. All of Ahimsa's delivery team are transferring to First Light, so people keep the same worker.
Will Ahimsa still exist?
Yes, as a project within First Light. The Ahimsa name, team and approach continue.
What happens to records and personal information?
First Light becomes responsible for looking after Ahimsa's client records from 2 November 2026. Records are kept securely, used only to continue support and keep people safe, and held for the same retention period as before. A full privacy notice is on both websites
Who do I contact with questions?
Partners and media: hello@firstlight.org.uk .Service users should speak to their worker.
Ahimsa is a project of First Light. First Light is a working name of First Light South West Ltd, a registered charity in England and Wales (1090457) and company (03440794).