Lynne Booker's story

"In November 2000 my son, Terry, was stabbed to death at the age of 19. He left behind a devastated family.

Five years on, I was still suffering from agoraphobia and anxiety attacks with little support for myself and my family. Knowing the pain first hand, I did not want to see another parent go through what I had.

In my son's name, I established the Terry Booker Foundation - a self support group for bereaved mums and dads. Our members meet in a safe environment to talk to others who understand their pain. We also give practical advice on sensitive issues such as coping with inquests, post mortems and court cases and operate a 24 hour helpline.

The support of the Community Safety Advisory Service (CSAS) has been invaluable to the growth and development of the Terry Booker Foundation.

CSAS have helped me secure funding for the Foundation and advised me on the management structure I need to have in place for the Foundation to run more effectively.

CSAS has also helped me raise the profile of the Terry Booker Foundation more widely. They helped me link in with both the Safer London Foundation (which led to them funding my work) and the Peace Alliance. I now sit on the Independent Advisory Group for Operation Blunt and in 2007 I won a London Peace Award.

I don't think the Foundation would have grown so much over the past couple of years without CSAS' support and I know the team will be there to support and advise me as the work of the Foundation grows over the coming years."

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The Community Safety Advisory Service, funded by London Councils, specialise in training, advising and providing networking opportunities for community groups and voluntary organisations who work in any area of crime reduction and community safety.