Template: Grant application summary for an IPA project/lab¶
Just for inspiration and stealing from
Project title:
IPA Lab: Digital safety and empowerment for survivors of Intimate Partner Abuse (IPA)
Project summary:
The IPA lab is a survivor-focused, community-based initiative designed to improve digital safety for individuals experiencing Intimate Partner Abuse (IPA). By providing practical, low-cost, on-premises digital infrastructure, the project equips shelters, community groups, and service providers with tools to detect, prevent, and respond to digital surveillance, stalking, and abuse.
Problem statement:
Digital abuse is an escalating tactic in IPA. Survivors face threats not just physically, but through phones, apps, spyware, and online accounts. However, many shelters and frontline services lack the resources or expertise to address this growing digital threat. The IPA Lab fills this gap by offering a do-it-yourself, privacy-preserving security system that can run locally—without depending on costly external providers or exposing sensitive data.
Objectives:
Equip shelters and NGOs with a free, open-source digital safety toolkit
Build the capacity of support workers to identify and respond to digital threats
Empower survivors through informed, trauma-aware digital self-defence
Promote digital sovereignty and privacy for vulnerable communities
Target audience: Shelters, refuges, frontline workers, grassroots support networks, and survivors of IPA, especially those in underfunded or rural settings across the UK and EU.
Activities:
Development and maintenance of the IPA-SIEM (Security Information & Event Management) system
Creation of easy-to-understand, multilingual guides and training materials
Collaboration with local shelters to deploy test environments
Workshops for support staff on identifying signs of digital tracking, spyware, and data leaks
Funding will support:
Hardware (e.g. laptops, routers, storage)
Translation and accessibility services
Training delivery and community outreach
System development and technical support
Evaluation and research to assess impact
Outcomes:
Safer digital environments for survivors
Stronger capacity for frontline organisations to support digital abuse cases
A replicable model for community-led digital safety in domestic abuse response
Why now: As intimate partner abuse increasingly intersects with digital life, digital safety has become a human right. The IPA lab meets this moment with pragmatic, grassroots tools that prioritise autonomy, privacy, and care.