Women's lives at risk from changes to funding for refuges, say charities

[SteveJ]

Campaigners call government proposals to take short-term supported housing out of welfare system a ‘matter of life and death’:

The lives of vulnerable women and children will be put at risk by proposed changes to funding for refuges, abuse survivors and charities have warned.

In little-publicised proposals, the government plans to remove refuges and other forms of short-term supported housing from the welfare system.

It would mean vulnerable women fleeing abusive partners will not be able to pay for their accommodation using housing benefit, the last guaranteed source of income available to refuges. On average, housing benefit makes up 53% of refuge funding.

Katie Ghose, the chief executive of Women’s Aid, said: “The government’s proposed reforms to supported housing will dismantle our national network of lifesaving refuges and put the lives of women and children trying to escape domestic abuse at risk. This is a matter of life or death.”

On average, two women a week are killed by a partner or ex-partner in England and Wales. Under the current spending model, Women’s Aid found 94 women with 90 children were turned away from refuge services in one day.

https://www.theguardian.com/society...ves-at-risk-funding-changes-refuges-charities

'Every refuge will close': what funding changes could mean for women ~
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/nov/26/womens-refuges-funding-changes-what-they-could-mean

 

[Kentonio]

For fecks sake, is there anything this government does that isn't inherently evil.