Tailored responses are needed to help homeless women

Vulnerable women who have been raped and sexually assaulted are not being given access to safe and secure accommodation.

Govan Law Centre (GLC) said it wants to redress the problem by creating a Women's Rights Homelessness Project to tackle gender inequality in homelessness.

Rough sleeper projects and temporary accommodation schemes have done much to help men but are lacking when it comes to meeting women’s needs.

A crowdfunder hoping to raise £5,000 by GLC has been launched to run outreach sessions so solicitors and advisers can take on cases and represent more women in courts to fight for their rights to safe, secure housing.

Lorna Walker, senior solicitor and GLC partner said: “Women’s experience of homelessness is different to men. They spend longer in temporary accommodation, they are more like to be looking after children, and they tend to stay in abusive or violent relationships to avoid homelessness. Rough sleeping can be particularly dangerous for women.

“Women need support to care for their children, they need protected from eviction and repossession, they need to leave abusive partners and they need financial assistance. Ultimately they want to find a decent safe home. And with the right funding we can start to help them do this."

Mike Dailly, solicitor advocate and GLC principal solicitor said: “We need more test cases, raise more court action and more judicial reviews, to challenge some of the deep seated gender inequalities in our homeless system. “