Safe housing denied to 10,000 women in England fleeing domestic abuse

The figures were published in the first annual progress report from the Domestic Abuse Safe Accommodation National Expert Steering Group, which was set up to monitor how councils are meeting their duties under the Domestic Abuse Act of 2021. While the steering group did not analyse the gender of those who were refused support, 97% of the adults who were able to secure safe housing were women.

The figures for households whose referrals were rejected may include some who later found support elsewhere. However, the figures exclude people who were not referred to safe accommodation in the first place because their council knew there was nowhere available for them.

The report also highlighted a lack of specialist provision for ethnic minority, disabled, LGBTQ+ and male domestic abuse victims, as well as those needing mental health or drug and alcohol support.