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Homes for Healing: housing experiences of Black and minoritised women survivors of gender-based violence

This report addresses the housing experiences of Black and minoritised women survivors of gender-based violence.

It draws on the insights gained after 5 years of continued work of the Women Against Homelessness and Abuse (WAHA) initiative funded by Trust for London and run by the Latin American Women’s Aid (LAWA). The data comes from WAHA's case files, drawing from 193 complex cases of Black and minoritised survivors.

One of the primary barriers that Black and minoritised survivors face when leaving abusive homes is the lack of accessible information about their rights and the services available to them. This lack of information, combined with language barriers and unfamiliarity with the UK system, often results in these survivors remaining unsupported for extended periods.

They also found that a number of women experienced 'gatekeeping practices' including Local Housing teams preventing survivors from making a valid homelessness application. Read the full report, including recommendations, below.

Read the full report here

About WAHA

Women against Homelessness and Abuse (WAHA) is an initiative for Black and Minority Ethnic women jointly run by the Latin American Women’s Aid in partnership with the OYA consortium of BME refuges in London.

WAHA aims to address Black and monitory ethnic women’s intersecting pressures of poverty, homelessness and gender violence through promoting changes in housing policy and practice in the UK using a rights-based approach. It is a policy but also a frontline project advising, representing and supporting survivors to make appeals and secure safe and appropriate accommodation, in an environment free from violence and intimidation.