Oxfam ladies helping the ladies

But staff and volunteers from the charity’s Leamington Books and Music shop are leading by example in encouraging people to take part in a fund-raising ‘Get Together’ campaign to help prevent such tragic instances.

Female members of the shop’s team hosted a book club reading and tea party at the shop in Regent Street last Thursday - but a ‘get together’ can be any gathering of women - or men - such as a dinner party, cake sale or night out.

Shop manager Marian Lawrence said: “There are so many women around the world trying to support their families in the face of awful poverty and it’s great to know that we can do something to make their lives a bit easier.”

A sum of £46 raised through a Get Together event could enable Oxfam to train a midwife in Ghana, while £135 could train five teachers in Mali. The campaign is being launched in the run-up to International Women’s Day on March 8. To find out more, visit www.oxfam.org.uk/womensday