Feasibility Study for a National Network of Women's Shelters and Transition Homes
Description:
Violence from intimate partners and homelessness are two significant issues that have serious ramifications for the lives of a number of Canadian women. Both issues have received considerable media attention and public concern, although in the case of homeless women, not necessarily from a gendered perspective. The institutional as well as the grass-roots response to btoh problems has been to develop shelters and transition houses to provide at least temporary safety and services in the hope of interrupting the cycle. Each Canadian province and territory has a number of shelters that both address violence against women and homelessness. There is little overlap, although a few organizations either house women with both problems or have separate shelters to address each. Indeed, the bulk of the research literature on women's homelessness and abuse focus on the issues separately. While there are admittedly key differences in both the populations they serve and the services they offer, what is clear is that shelters not uncommonly deal with the same women. Currently both the VAW sector and the homeless sector have only fledgling national bodies to address their issues, each faces with serious funding challenges. Even more importantly, there has been no venue to support a discussion of the over-lapping issues and possible mechanism to assist women and their families more adequately. (abstract from the document)
Type of Resource:
Government Document
Publication Date:
2007
Location:
Ottawa