Briefing: Social housing – a place of safety for domestic abuse survivors

Domestic abuse is, by its very nature, a housing issue and a key driver of homelessness for women. 2.1 million people were subjected to domestic abuse in England and Wales last year with two-thirds (65%) of victims women. Domestic abuse is the third most common trigger of homelessness.

Access to an alternative safe and affordable home is a key factor in a survivors’ decision-making about whether they stay with, or leave, an abuser. If survivors who need to escape their home cannot find another suitable, affordable home they are at risk of homelessness.

The chronic lack of genuinely affordable social rent homes and a punitive benefit cap forces survivors of domestic abuse to make an impossible choice: homelessness or being trapped with their abuser.