Camilla's most cherished cause: Queen visits domestic abuse charity as it celebrates 45th anniversary

Queen Camilla today visited a charity supporting women and children who have been impacted by domestic abuse - a cause very close to her heart. The Queen, 77, spent time with the Asian Women's Resource Centre on Thursday as it marked 45 years of helping victims of domestic violence, forced marriage and honour-based violence.

The charity aims to support women and children from black, minority, and ethnic (BME) backgrounds who have been the victim of this type of abuse. Camilla is committed to raising awareness of domestic and sexual violence, and previously pledged to break the 'taboo' around the topic in a 90-minute documentary.

In the programme, broadcast in December, she said: 'It's so important to do something now.'. Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors saw cameras follow Camilla for a year as she met survivors of domestic abuse and campaigners working to help victims and raise understanding of the issue.

Today, Camilla visited the Asian Women's Resource Centre in north west London. The charity is described as a 'specialist women's organisation' providing 'independent, specialist and dedicated support services to Black, Minority, Ethnic (BME) women and children, experiencing abuse across London'.

Queen Camilla today visited a charity supporting women and children who have been impacted by domestic abuse - a cause very close to her heart. The Queen, 77, spent time with the Asian Women's Resource Centre on Thursday as it marked 45 years of helping victims of domestic violence , forced marriage and honour-based violence.

It also 'provides training to frontline practitioners both from the voluntary and statutory sectors on issues affecting BME women, such as self-harm and suicide, forced marriages, honour killings, trafficking, and caste and dowry'. Camilla staved off the cold during her visit in a dark brown, tie-waist coat, which she accessorised with a glittering gold brooch on the collar.

The Queen carried a small, black handbag for her solo outing - simple against the black and white patterned blouse she wore. And Camilla kept her hair in its typical smooth style as she chatted to those who work for the charity in Brent. It comes after the 77-year-old was seen as never before in a powerful new documentary exploring her work to raise awareness of domestic and sexual violence.

The charity is committed to supporting women and children from black, minority, and ethnic (BME) backgrounds who have been the victim of abuse. Camilla is committed to raising awareness of domestic and sexual violence, and previously pledged to break the 'taboo' around the topic in a 90-minute documentary.

In a documentary broadcast in December, Camilla said: 'It's so important to do something now'. In December, the royal chose to front a new programme, driven to highlight an issue she has spent more than a decade campaigning on after generations of it being swept under the carpet.

An estimated 2.1 million people aged over 16 in England and Wales have experienced some form of domestic abuse. Shockingly, one woman is killed by a current or former partner every five days on average, with more than 105,000 children living in homes where there is a high-risk of domestic abuse.

Three women also take their own lives each week, unable to see a way out. The charity is described as a 'specialist women's organisation' providing 'independent, specialist and dedicated support services to Black, Minority, Ethnic (BME) women and children, experiencing abuse across London'.

Camilla said in the documentary: 'One of the most difficult things about domestic abuse, to understand, it's not the bruises and the black eyes, which, unfortunately you see, through violence, this is something that creeps up very slowly and, far too often, it ends up with women being killed.

'You meet somebody, you think they're wonderful and attractive and love you…and then bit by bit, they start to undermine you. 'They take away your friends, they take away your family…and then when you start questioning it…these people become very violent.'.