Two-thirds of domestic abuse survivors rejected from refuges due to national shortages, report reveals

A new report has found that two-thirds of referrals to domestic violence shelters are rejected due to shortages nationally.

Research by the charity Women’s Aid found that of the 10,665 women and 11,732 children supported by services last year, 65.2 per cent of referrals for a place in shelter were rejected, despite the annual increase in bed spaces.

Experts say this marks the highest rate of rejected referrals in five years, particularly due to lack of capacity, as demand for specialist domestic violence services continues to far outpace services currently available to survivors.

The annual Domestic Abuse Report, which provides a picture of the needs and work of domestic abuse services in the UK, follows the publication in December of the cross-government strategy to build a safer society for women and girls, following Labour’s commitment to halve violence against women and girls over the next decade (VAWG).

Despite promises made in the government strategy, Women’s Aid says its findings show “urgent, systemic change is needed” to tackle a “decades-long funding crisis” for the sector to continue providing life-saving support.

Labor MP Apsana Begum warned: “The VAWG sector has repeatedly said that without dedicated, long-term funding the government will never be able to deliver on its promises under the VAWG strategy.

“It is a tragedy that any woman or child is denied referral to a service that can literally make the difference between life and death. This year’s Domestic Violence Report is a wake-up call for government: the time to act with appropriate funding and investment is now.”

The report also found that survivors and those with additional support needs and those from immigrant or minority backgrounds face additional difficulties when seeking shelter, with only 1.1 per cent of available shelter places suitable for wheelchair users and only 11.5 per cent of vacant places being able to consider giving a place to a woman without recourse to public funds. Although the impact of domestic abuse on child victims is significant and they are now recognized by law as victims in their own right, the proportion of refuge services providing support to children and young people has fallen by 11.6 per cent nationally.

The research found bed spaces were almost a fifth below the Council of Europe recommendation of one family place per 10,000 people, while at least an eighth (13.3 per cent) of asylum services did not benefit from any funding provided by local government.

Elaine Langshaw, chief executive of Newcastle Women’s Aid, said referrals had increased significantly in recent years, forcing the service to work beyond its core capacity and also stretching the services they referred women to when they were unable to provide support. “The safety net that women rely on is under real pressure,” she said. “We are also seeing an increase in referrals from women outside Newcastle who are unable to access support in their local area. This shows us that this is not just a local issue, the wider system is under pressure.”

Newcastle Women’s Aid said it delivered help to a woman who was unable to access help in the local area due to long waiting times and limited availability, out of fear for her safety. The woman, who cannot be named for security reasons, said: “I didn’t know where else to turn. I had already tried services where I lived but I wasn’t getting the help I needed. Talking to a real person who understood my safety and could help me made a huge difference at a really scary time.”

Anna Barnett, service operations manager at Opoka CIO, the only bilingual domestic abuse service supporting Polish women and children in the UK, said their capacity had not kept pace with growing demand. “Each referral that is rejected represents a woman and her children who may be left in unsafe or unstable conditions due to the lack of available services,” she said.

Women’s Aid blames systemic pressures on the housing system for the “unprecedented” refusal rates and is calling on the government to make plans to “expedite” commissioning. The charity is also calling for funding for survivors, surrounded by an “unacceptable” number of services run with partial or unstable funding.

Farah Nazeer, chief executive of Women’s Aid, said: “The reality is that domestic abuse cannot be eradicated without the support and information that specialist domestic abuse services bring. These services understand survivors and the help they need to rebuild their lives. Their value needs to be recognized for the life-saving work they do and they are fundamentally the backbone of our country’s response to ending violence against women and girls. If we are to live in a world where domestic abuse is no longer tolerated, the work of these services must be protected.”

A Local Government Association spokesman said: “Victims and survivors of domestic violence rely on the statutory and discretionary services that councils provide. “But ongoing funding pressures are making it increasingly difficult for councils to ensure victims access all the help they need.

“Only with long-term, sustainable funding can councils help protect individuals and families from the physical and psychological harms of domestic abuse and invest in the prevention and early intervention measures needed to address root causes, support more victims and stop domestic abuse in the first place.”

A UK government spokesman said: “We treat violence against women and girls as a national emergency and have a clear commitment to halving it over the next decade.

“No one should have to stay in an unsafe home and our funding helped almost 77,000 victims and children access support last year. We know there is more to do and we are investing nearly £500 million to help even more people get the safety and stability they deserve.”