A rights-based response to supporting families fleeing domestic abuse

A lack of affordable accommodation in Wales is leaves many households fleeing domestic abuse with nowhere to go. Cerys Clark, policy and public affairs manager at CIH Cymru, argues that by incorporating the right to adequate housing we can provide safe and secure homes at the point they are needed most.

In September 2024, Welsh government published the first full homelessness data set since before the Covid-19 pandemic. The full collection had been rightly paused to allow frontline statutory homelessness services the time and space to navigate the pandemic. Reflecting on the full homelessness data now gives us the opportunity to look at how homelessness in Wales has changed post-pandemic and what groups are most negatively impacted by an increasing lack of affordable accommodation.

The number of recorded homeless presentations made due to a household fleeing abuse shows a minimal increase in the number of households who presented as homeless and were then owed the duty to help relieve their homelessness. Yet this pattern is not repeated for those households owed the full homelessness duty. Pre-pandemic there were a total of 375. Post-pandemic there were 603 households, a 60 per cent increase in the past four years.

This does not necessarily mean that there has been a significant increase in domestic abuse in Wales. Part of the reason for this increase in households homeless due to domestic abuse and then owed the full homeless duty is likely to be the lack of affordable housing options.

The duty to help to relieve is only in place for 56 days. If a household's homelessness is not relieved in this timeframe, then a full duty will be accepted if the household is priority need and unintentionally homeless. Those fleeing domestic abuse are automatically identified as priority need in Wales and are unlikely to be found to be “intentionally homeless”. So, if there are no affordable housing options for a household within the 56 days they will be owed the full housing duty.

One reason for the increase in the number of households fleeing domestic abuse and owed the full duty is the increased pressure felt across all types of temporary accommodation, of which the ‘hostels and women’s refuges’ category is one. Before the pandemic there were 444 households placed in hostels and women’s refuge accommodation. Post-pandemic there were 903 households in hostels and women’s refuge accommodation, 201 of which are families with children.

The increased number of households fleeing domestic abuse and owed the full homelessness duty coupled with an increase in the number of households staying in refuge accommodation for more than six months are visible symptoms of the ongoing housing crisis in Wales. These escalating numbers also show the impact of the housing crisis on specific groups of people.

It has been well publicised that there is a significant lack of social housing in Wales, with 139,000 individuals waiting for a social home in October 2023. This means that for many households, private renting is the only option to quickly secure a home to resolve their housing needs. Yet the private rented sector is becoming increasingly unaffordable and access for those needing accommodation is often difficult due to the finance needed up front for a deposit and rent in advance. For many households fleeing domestic abuse they will not have the ability to pay the deposits needed, nor will they have access to a guarantor to ensure that they can secure a private rent property swiftly to flee an abusive situation.

Welsh government in its white paper on housing adequacy, fair rents and affordability outlined that we need a larger supply of affordable homes in Wales if we are to deliver housing adequacy. This was echoed in CIH Cymru’s latest sector snapshot which outlined that if we are to adequately tackle homelessness in Wales, we need more affordable homes.

More investment is needed to overcome planning backlogs, the skills shortage and ongoing issues with supply chains. Incorporating the right to adequate housing and using the maximum available resources available to progressively realise that right, can help overcome these barriers and transform the housing sector in Wales.  

If we truly want to make homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring, we need an increased supply of affordable homes. CIH Cymru believes that full incorporation of the right to adequate housing into Welsh law is the mechanism that will drive the level of investment needed for this increased supply, ensuring that those households fleeing domestic abuse will be able to secure a home, where they can feel safe and secure in as short a timeframe as possible.

To find out more about the Back the Bill Campaign Alternative White Paper: The Right to Adequate Housing, click the following link: https://www.cih.org/media/32jk1khg/alternative-white-paper.pdf

To find out more about the 16 Days of Activism (25 November – 10 December 2024), a global campaign fighting against gender-based violence, visit: https://www.unwomenuk.org/16-days-activism/