CIH Scotland response to the inquiry on financial considerations when leaving an abusive relationship

We welcome the opportunity to respond to the committee’s inquiry on financial considerations when leaving an abusive relationship. CIH Scotland, the professional body for people working in the housing sector, has been running a campaign on domestic abuse, called Make a Stand, since 2018. This campaign challenges social landlords to recognise and respond to their responsibility to victims/survivors of domestic abuse. 

We know from research conducted by Women's Aid in England that the cost of living crisis has made it harder for victims to leave abusers and that concerns about financial hardship are being used as a tool for coercive control.

We also know that women’s pre-existing economic inequality means they have fewer financial resources, capital/savings, less access to pensions, and more existing debt and their disadvantaged position in the labour market, including part-time, insecure and/or low-paid employment, underemployment, and unpaid care work, has a direct impact on their incomes and poverty.

Despite the existence of these systemic gendered issues, we know that there is an inconsistent approach from social landlords to how victims are supported with financial concerns. Not all landlords have policies in place so that victims are not charged for repairs or are responsible for arrears, and nor do all provide a fund to leave when moving homes. This was highlighted in our 2023 report, Policies not Promises.

We called for and welcomed the announcement in 2023 of a national fund to leave pilot which ran in early 2024. Following this pilot, we want the Scottish Government to provide a permanent dedicated support fund, or with clear guidance and capable of delivering short-term recurring payments, to support women leaving an abusive partner. This should include essential crisis costs to enable a woman to leave and to bridge the gap between leaving and the first Universal Credit payment.

It is important that such a fund is quickly accessible to people at the time they feel ready to leave and can be accessed without the knowledge of the perpetrator and with appropriate safeguards to ensure they are not provided with information on the applicant’s location. It will also be important to have options appropriate for women who have no bank account, or no access to their own bank account. The fund must also work in both urban and rural locations and include a monitoring and recording function that is not burdensome for any party and allows partners to learn what is effective.

We believe such a fund would work complementary to the requirement included in the Housing (Scotland) Bill being considered by Parliament for all social landlords to have a domestic abuse policy.

Contact: Callum Chomczuk, national director of CIH Scotland, callum.chomczuk@cih.org 

1. To what extent do Scottish Government strategies such as Equally Safe give proper recognition to financial considerations when leaving an abusive relationship?

Equally Safe is a critical strategy in setting out the Scottish Government’s commitment to addressing violence against women and girls, however, it is not a financial commitment and nor does it place duties or requirements on social landlords. To adequately recognise the financial impact of domestic abuse, we recommend that the Scottish Government builds on the fund to leave pilot introduced in 2024 and ensures that the guidance accompanying the Housing Bill is explicit about the need for all social landlords to have a fund to leave option for victims/survivors.

Feedback from Scottish Women’s Aid in their response to the Housing Bill Stage 1 consultation suggests that a significant amount of the fund from the pilot was used for deposits for accommodation and moving costs, where women needed to move as part of leaving their abusive partner, preventing women and children from becoming homeless. This suggests the fund was delivering on its desired outcomes.

2. How well do social security systems take account of domestic abuse? Do you have specific examples of social security rules and practices that need to change?

No response.

3. When public bodies, for example local authorities and housing associations, are pursuing debt owed to them, to what extent do they take into account the way debt can arise as a result of being in or leaving an abusive relationship? Do you have specific examples of rules and practices that need to change?

The picture is mixed across Scotland in how social landlords consider the economic context of victims of domestic abuse. The 2023 review conducted by Scottish Women’s Aid and CIH Scotland, Policies not Promises, showed while there were pockets of good practice in writing off repairs costs, arrears, etc, this was not demonstrably detailed in every domestic abuse policy.

CIH Scotland believe, as the Housing Bill progresses through Parliament, that there should be a commitment for social landlords to report to the Scottish Housing Regulator (SHR) to what extent they are meeting the needs of victims of domestic abuse. We do not believe reporting through the annual assurance statement provides sufficient rigour and confidence and would recommend annual reporting to the SHR on indicators such as prevention of homelessness due to domestic abuse and the number of victims reporting positive housing outcomes following a domestic abuse presentation. Such indicators would inform social landlords’ policies to mitigate and minimise financial abuse.

4. Do legal aid rules take sufficient account of the financial circumstances of women who have experienced domestic abuse? Do you have any specific examples of rules or practices which need to change?

No response.

5. What are the particular barriers faced by those with No Recourse to Public Funds? And what can be done at a Scottish and local level to address these?

Because domestic abuse is about power, perpetrators can use many ways to control their partner. Women who have moved to Scotland from another country experience domestic abuse in the same ways as women born here, but there are some differences in how abusive partners try to gain control depending on how they see their victim as being vulnerable. This could include:

• Stopping her from learning English or communicating with friends and family at home.
• Threatening to have her deported if she does anything about the violence or abuse.
• Destroying or hiding her passport and legal documents.
• Insisting on accompanying her to appointments so she is never alone.
• Telling her that she can’t call the police because she is in the country illegally.

Some women may have restrictions placed on their eligibility for housing and social security because of their immigration status. This is a complex area. Scottish Government and COSLA guidance sets out the legal framework and good practice to assist local authorities in meeting their statutory duties and providing an effective social work response when working with people with NRPF and with EEA nationals.

6. Does the advice and information available to women experiencing domestic abuse adequately deal with financial barriers?

No response.

7. To what extent is it the role of government to ensure that someone’s economic circumstances do not prevent them from leaving an abusive relationship?

No response.

8. Please share any other comments that you have with us.

Over recent years, the Scottish Government has taken significant steps to ensure that financial considerations are minimised when someone is seeking to leave an abusive relationship:

• The Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act 2021 gives social landlords the power to end a joint tenancy and keep one person in the property rather than being forced to evict the joint tenants.
• The Fund to Leave pilot in 2024 was used for deposits for accommodation and moving costs, where women needed to move as part of leaving their abusive partner, preventing women and children from becoming homeless.
• The Housing Bill currently being considered by Parliament will place a duty on all social landlords to have a domestic abuse policy, which should help tackle the main cause of women’s homelessness - domestic abuse.

However, despite this progress further work is still required across all areas:

• The 2021 Act has yet to be enacted by the Scottish Government and four years after being passed by Parliament, no statutory guidance has been produced to support social landlords to evict a perpetrator and allow a victim to stay in their own home.
• The Fund to Leave pilot concluded in March 2024 and despite an evaluation being conducted by Scottish Women’s Aid, there has been no commitment from the Scottish Government to roll out the fund nationally.
• Further clarification is required as to how the Scottish Government believes proportionate oversight will be provided of social landlords’ domestic abuse policies, if the Housing Bill provisions are passed as expected.