Domestic and family violence is one of the key drivers of homelessness.
Although there is growing awareness of domestic and family violence, rates of abuse remain grossly high throughout society for women and for the LGBTQIA+ community. As a result, those experiencing or at risk of experiencing violence are often forced to leave their home to seek safer accommodation.
9,120 women a year are becoming homeless as a direct result of family violence and 7,690 women a year are returning to perpetrators due to having nowhere affordable to live (Equity Economics – Nowhere to go).
These accounts are more or less universal, however, we know that some groups have unique risks and experiences. For this reason, we need tailored policy and service delivery responses that also consider the unique safety, wellbeing and recovery of someone who has experienced domestic or family violence. These responses need to be evidence-based, trauma-informed and person-centred.
Despite its prevalence, many victim survivors present to mainstream homelessness services that are unable to support their family violence issues or high-risk safety concerns. This often leads them to being bounced between two systems: homelessness and family violence, without getting appropriate support from either.
Trans and gender-diverse people experience additional barriers to accessing safe and affirming support due to systemic discrimination, lack of inclusive practices, and fear of further harm.
Intersecting with women’s economic insecurity is their increased risk of experiencing sexual and domestic and family violence:
- One in five women over the age of 15 has experienced sexual violence (Our Watch)
- Women are four times more likely to have experienced sexual violence than men (ABS)
- 9 out of 10 people seeking housing support due to family violence are women and children (AIHW)
- Women with disability are twice as likely to have experienced sexual violence over their lifetime than women without disabilities (Our Watch)
- Research shows that bisexual women and transgender and gender diverse people experience particularly high rates of domestic, family and sexual violence (ANROWS)
- An estimated 90% of violence against First Nations women is undisclosed however the likelihood of First Nations women to be hospitalised due to family violence was 27 times higher than non-Indigenous women (AIHW)
The ongoing threat to their safety forces many of the people support (often with accompanying children) to make the incredibly difficult decision to leave their home and seek support through the homelessness system.
Financial abuse
Another factor that is often at play in family violence situations is financial abuse. Financial abuse – controlling spending, withholding or depriving a person of finances – is an aspect of ‘coercive control’ and a form of family violence. Conservative estimates suggest it occurs in half of all family violence situations.
Find out more at WIRE and download their information booklet.
We know that when victim survivors separate from a violent partner, they are often forced to leave the family home. With this can come with the costs of relocating, severed employment (if they’re forced to relocate), and, in some cases, recovery from trauma that prevents them from returning to work.
Time and time again, we see women and gender diverse people who cannot afford private rental costs on an inadequate single income forced into poverty. This ongoing financial instability makes them highly vulnerable to future episodes of homelessness.
Children
We know that women are much more likely to be primary caregivers and sole parents, and are therefore much more likely to present to homelessness services with children in their care. 41% of women seeking homeless support are single mothers with accompanying children (AIHW).
Juno recognises that children have their own unique experiences and is committed to the safety of all children and young people who access our service. All children connected to Juno are recognised as individual clients. This does not take away from or disrespect the role of the primary carer, it simply acknowledges that children have their own needs and rights and deserve to be treated as individuals.
The threat of intervention from Child Protection for those experiencing homelessness also adds another layer and increases the invisibility of homeless women and gender diverse people as they may couch service or stay with friends or family to avoid intervention.
Support services need to consider this reality to ensure that the needs of the whole family are being met, including:
- Supporting the whole family to recover from the trauma associated with family violence;
- Minimising relocation away from existing community connections (childcare, schools);
- Promoting reunification with children in cases where custody has been lost as a result of the effects of homelessness and family violence;
- And avoiding mixed accommodation settings where the family may be exposed to unsafe behaviour.
Responses to homelessness must be equipped to promote the wellbeing of the whole family.
Find out more about Juno’s specialist family violence support
