Women’s Aid welcomes the announcement of the domestic abuse fund from DCLG today that is targeted short term funding for specialist domestic abuse refuges. Polly Neate, Chief Executive of Women’s Aid said: “This is what we campaigned for alongside The Sun and are delighted that refuges will be able to access funding to keep them going in this financial year. We are pleased that the funding will be specifically targeted towards local areas where there are gaps in provision and specialist services for black and minority ethnic (BME) women. What is even more important is that the Government have committed to working with us on a developing a long-term funding solution which recognises the need for a national network of specialist refuges. This is something we called for in our SOS campaign. We hope, with this funding and the development of a long-term funding solution we will be able to say soon that no woman or child is turned away from refuge.”
On 20 August 2015 we received some wonderful news: the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has opened a short-term fund to help refuges, many of which are run by our federation of services, stay open over the coming months. This fund was a direct response from the government to our Give Me Shelter campaign with The Sun, and we are really pleased that the government listened to the voices of women in crisis.
It also shows that the government is acknowledging that refuges are a linchpin in the range of services needed by survivors. Not every survivor needs or wants a refuge space, but 11,900 women used one last year. This isn’t an easy choice for yourself or your children; just imagine for a moment how scared and trapped you must feel to make it. You will need help from people who understand and can give you what you need, not just a bed and breakfast.
But what next? The funds announced today will only forestall a crisis in refuge provision until April 2016. We need a new and different funding system for refuges, in which they are no longer vulnerable to local authorities who decide they will only protect women and children from their local area, or that they’d rather buy cheaper homelessness hostels instead of domestic violence refuges. Listen to these survivors tell you how they changed their lives.
As well as being a lifeline for women and children, the economic sense of refuges is obvious; each homicide in Britain was last year estimated by HM Treasury to cost £1.8m. On average, two women a week in England and Wales are killed at the hands of a partner or ex-partner. And the positive impact of appropriate support early on reduces the need for future support.
The government has committed to finding a long-term funding solution to this problem, and we will carry on working with them to make sure it offers survivors the support they need.
Polly Neate, chief executive of Women’s Aid
HERitage stall this Saturday 29th January at St Cuthbert's hall, Amble. Come along, see you there