Women’s Refuges
Debate between Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist and Lord Bishop of Portsmouth
Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist
My noble friend raises a very good point, because although in three-quarters of domestic abuse-related offences the victim was female, a significant 25% were male. Between April 2018 and March 2019 in England and Wales, 80 females and 16 males were killed by their partner or ex-partner.
There are refuges, or other forms of domestic abuse safe accommodations, dedicated to supporting male victims fleeing domestic abuse, a small number of which were funded under our recent £16.6 million emergency funding round. The new duty on safe accommodation will require authorities to conduct a needs assessment of all victims in their area, and to develop and publish a strategy based on this assessment.
The Lord Bishop of Portsmouth
My Lords, I return to the provision available after victims and their children are able to move on from refuges. Substantial, important and fragile ground has been moved and gained through the provisions in this Bill. But the provision after victims leave refuges is very patchy indeed, offered in only one in seven local authorities. Can the Minister say when provision will be available everywhere, for all victims and survivors?
Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist
The Bill endeavours to prevent the postcode lottery that has existed for victims of abuse. We are working closely with local authorities, and we have set up a ministerial-led national steering group; we will evaluate all the responses to this, including the expansion of community-based services.