An ex-police officer hopes her poem about domestic abuse will comfort women who feel they are alone this International Women’s Day.

Former East Area police officer, Serena Malcolm, 39, from Harold Hill, wrote Sticks and Stones in 2019 in a bid to share her personal experiences with a wider audience.

International Women’s Day takes place on March 8, 2022.

Serena, who has been writing since she was seven years old, said her private experiences and encounters as a police officer fed into the creation of her emotive poem.

“It is an empowering piece that aims to draw necessary attention to the issue of domestic abuse," she said.

The poem's video montage features Serena and her friends Carryl Thomas, Joanne Thorogood, Shivali Shukla Modha and Kelly Wood.

The 39-year-old, who is now happily married, said featuring women from all different backgrounds is impactful because they bring their own energy, experiences and feeling to the words.

She added: “I felt using women from all different backgrounds made it more universal and I felt the message would then get across to different types of women.”

The start of the poem reads: “Here I am, your sacrificial lamb, I have taken off my clothes, so please, look close, I was fervently reproached, mentally morose, you stripped me with your lack of care, but now I choose to lay myself bare...”

Serena said: “In the last couple of years, differences in gender equality have come out across the board, women have always struggled in terms of society and for me it’s about solidarity and showing that the struggles are universal.

"There is something about standing together and giving a voice to those who are unable to speak up.

“It’s [the poem] trying to say to women that you aren’t alone and you have a voice and there are people who will stand with you.

“No matter what you have been through, you can use it to become stronger, move forward and to be where you want to be.”

Serena is currently working on creating new video montages for other poems she has written, as she feels “reading a poem on the page doesn't have the same impact”.

Sticks and Stones can be watched at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhhfqSjdRCg