Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of domestic violence refuges which have closed as a result of lack of funding in each of the last five years.

Domestic Abuse is a devastating crime. That is why we are determined to ensure that victims get the help they need when they need it. In last year's Spending Review we secured new £40 million funding to support victims of domestic abuse.

It is for local areas to assess their needs for domestic abuse services and to make decisions on the provision of safe accommodation, including refuges and support for victims of domestic abuse.

In the new Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy published on the 8 March, we set out our ambition to improve services for women suffering from domestic abuse, commiting to a new Statement of Expectations to set out for the first time what we expect from local areas.

To support this, we are launching a new two year fund for refuges and other forms of accommodation-based support and to help local areas take the steps they need to meet the National Statement.

The new funding builds on the £3.5 million funding to support victims of domestic abuse and is on top of the £10 million funding to stop refuges closing and strengthen the provision of safe accommodation in the last spending review period.