Frances Rickford investigates the prospects of mothers and children who have suffered from domestic violence and reports on moves to improve the provision of refuges
"Domestic violence is a crime", "Enough is enough", "Domestic abuse - there’s no excuse" boom the campaign posters. Violence in the home is being taken more seriously than ever across the UK. Many government bodies and public agencies now have detailed strategies on domestic violence, with more than 200 multi-agency forums on the issue according to Women’s Aid. The government is consulting on changes to make it easier to remove the perpetrator of domestic violence from the home, and so enable women and children to avoid homelessness.1
But despite improvements in many services, life for most of the children who have to flee their homes because of violence is still full of fear and uncertainty.
Domestic violence accounts for around a quarter of all recorded crime in England and Wales with an incident being reported to police every minute, and studies have indicated that children are living in a high proportion of violent homes. One study found that in 90 per cent of instances of domestic violence, children were in either the same or the next room. There is now abundant evidence and that witnessing violence is seriously harmful to their development, and that many men who are violent to their female partners are also violent to children in the household.
The experience of those working in refuges is that women will put up with violence from a male partner sometimes for many years before they leave, and may also leave and return home many times. When they do leave it is often during an emergency, when their fears for their own or their children’s safety have reached crisis point. Finding somewhere safe to go is the first priority, but with a roof over their heads their troubles are still far from over.
Children too face the disruption and stress of being made suddenly homeless, with the prospect of months of waiting before they find a permanent new home. For children in asylum-seeking families, the options are even fewer. Asylum
seekers experiencing domestic violence are ineligible for income support or housing benefit.
The quality of the temporary accommodation that these families find themselves in is still a lottery. Although far from ideal, life for in a women’s refuge is likely to offer children a lot more support than other forms of temporary accommodation. Nearly all refuges for women escaping domestic violence run by voluntary sector Women’s Aid groups have facilities for children, including a play area and in about three-quarters, a dedicated children’s support worker. Some also offer support to teenagers, although nine out of 10 refuges operate an upper age limit for admitting teenage boys - most commonly 16 but in some cases 14 or 15. Most refuges also provide outreach support for children - including older boys - who have moved on from the refuge. But the funding of children’s support work in refuges is precarious, with many posts funded on a temporary basis by the lottery’s Community Fund, the Children’s Fund or BBC Children in Need.
But for every homeless family in a refuge there are about another six made homeless through domestic violence who are living in some other sort of temporary accommodation including with friends or relatives, in hostels, or in bed and breakfast hotels, and these are far less likely to have access to support for children, or even space for play.
How long families have to wait before they get a permanent home depends on many factors including where they want to live and the size of the family. Sandra McCormack, Family Support Worker at Angus Women’s Aid, reports that a family with four children would probably have to wait for a year before they were offered a home, and a smaller family wanting to be rehoused in a desirable area could also wait many months. Government research has suggested that security in their new home is often the highest priority for families who have experienced domestic violence, but because of housing shortages they are most likely to be offered homes in neighbourhoods perceived as unsafe.
For children, a long stay in any kind of temporary accommodation often disrupts their education, and when families have to share kitchens and even bathrooms for long periods, tensions build up. However, as Cormack reports, close friendships between children, and between their mothers are often forged in refuges. "Living collectively with strangers isn’t very easy but women do bond. Two women in this refuge have just gone away on holiday together with their children."
The government has now set aside £7m for local authorities to fund an expansion of dedicated refuge provision, including self contained move-on flats to help prepare families for living independently. Under the Supporting People funding regime, local authorities will also be able to commission support for families once they have been rehoused to help them settle down and maintain their new tenancies, as well as fund housing-related support to families in temporary accommodation because of domestic violence.
Things are undoubtedly improving. But until we reach the stage where we can guarantee protection from domestic violence to women and children without forcing them into months of homelessness and instability, the damage to children will continue.
1 Home Office, Safety and Justice: The Government’s Proposals on Domestic Violence, 2003 www.homeoffice.gov.uk
See The Provision of Accommodation and Support for Households Experiencing Domestic Violence in England (Housing Report 2002), Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, 2002, www.housing.odpm.gov.uk/information/domestic/report/
‘Many are angry and confused’
Michelle Robson is education support worker for young people aged 13 to 19 at Hull Women’s Aid. She supports those living in the refuge and those who have moved on. Some may be escaping a violent partner themselves, or they may have come with their mother. Robson says: "Refuge life for teenagers is not always easy. The whole family is likely to be sleeping in the same room, which they’re not used to. They may also have moved far away from their relations and friends and they often can’t bring much of their stuff with them into the refuge, especially if they fled in a crisis.
"Also we have rules here which they wouldn’t have at home. For example, we have to restrict and monitor visitors in order to keep the refuge a safe place to live - and that might mean a restriction on friends coming to the door.
"Many of them are very confused and sometimes feel angry and insecure - either because they want their parents to stay together, or because maybe mum wants to go back home and they don’t want her to. If mum does go back to the relationship for whatever reason, inevitably the young person also returns too, whatever their feelings. Young people often take on the role of protector."
School attendance is a problem for many of the young people Robson works with. "We try to maintain as much stability as possible, but sometimes it is not safe for them to carry on going to their old school. If they do stay at their existing school we do safety planning with them."
It’s much more difficult to get a new school place for a teenager than it is for younger children, says Robson. And many are reluctant to attend school because they feel they need to be on hand to protect their mother - or at least to be aware of what is happening at home. "Some teenagers have long periods of absence from school and due to the nomadic lifestyle they can suffer social exclusion. If long periods of absence are unavoidable we do supplement their education in the refuge."
But despite the difficulties Robson says most young people do have positive experiences there. "It is good for them to talk about their tensions and feelings in a safe place. Many have low self-esteem and think they can’t succeed at anything. Part of the work we do is to help young people feel more confident."