Closure of refuges could send UK back to Cathy Come Home days
Back to Topic
Click to Print
Useful Websites
Glossary Term Selection
Closure of refuges could send UK back to Cathy Come Home days
By Lydia Smith
Domestic violence refuges are essential for safeguarding the lives of women and children against abuse. But as they close one by one, the network is under terrible strain. As local funding is cut, the country is entering a crisis that could set support for some of the most vulnerable back by four decades.
Born out of the feminist movement of the 1970s, Britain was one of the first countries to pioneer special safe houses for women fleeing physical and sexual violence at home. The first of its kind, Chiswick’s Women’s Aid for battered women was opened in London in 1971 by Erin Pizzey.
But today [25 November], on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, Women’s Aid estimates 155 women and 103 children are turned away from the refuges that still exist.
According to Sandra Horley, chief executive of the national domestic violence charity Refuge, the closures pose the possibility of “...
Want to see the rest of this article?
Would you like to see the rest of this article and all the other benefits that Issues Online can provide with?
- Useful related articles
- Video and multimedia references
- Statistical information and reference material
- Glossary of terms
- Key Facts and figures
- Related assignments
- Resource material and websites
