Women's unemployment and poverty, broken marriages, teenage pregnancies, lone parent families, domestic violence and social isolation are all features associated with the lives of women in this area.

The daily experience of unpaid work such as childminding and managing homes on a shoestring budgets, often in total isolation, is the unseen reality of many women's lives.

It was the recognition of the extent of these combined problems and the vacuum which exists regarding the promotion of women's issues, which led to the formation of the Bogside and Brandywell Women's Group in 1994.

It is a voluntary organisation with women from diverse backgrounds and experience, ranging from teachers and students to those who have been involved in community development work for many years.

The Women's Group have to date been instrumental in the creation of many projects aiming to aleviate this situation. For example, they have recently launched a series of courses to women of all ages enabling them to extend their skills and return to the labour market.