Four out of five women unable to access services - Sonas Housing Annual Review
Published: Monday, November 05, 2012
Four out of every five women calling a women's crisis domestic violence service in Dublin are turned away because the service is already full, according to findings from Sonas Housing's 2011 annual review.
The review, launched by Minister Jan O'Sullivan on 31 October, found that in 2011 the Sonas' refuge Viva House received almost 600 enquiries from women living in abusive situations but it could only able take in 130 women because the service was already full.The same trend was seen in Sonas longer-term housing projects.
The demand for Sonas almost doubled that of 2010 and has risen incrementally over the past five years, in part because Sonas has opened new services including Viva House crisis refuge. However the demand is in no way being met by the over-stretched services in operation.
'Not having space available is a serious risk to the lives of many women and children,' said Anne McKeon, chairperson of Sonas Housing Association. 'There is a real need for more domestic violence spaces in the community to alleviate this risk.'
The report found that December and June were the quietest times in terms of demand. The quiet months were followed by massive spikes in February and July which were the busiest months of the year.
'The trends in demand are often family related,' said McKeon. 'In December, mothers are aware that children want to spend Christmas in their homes. Younger children may worry that Santa may not be able to find them if they move into a refuge. In June many children finish their school year or take formal exams so mothers often wait until these are completed before making a move out of an abusive situation.
'In our experience women try to hold a situation together for the sake of their family.' Approximately 70% of the women who use the Sonas services have children.
'For the women and children who can gain access to our services, we are able to support them and help them move safely away from abuse and on to independent living,' said McKeon.
Download a copy of the report here. If you would like a print version please email info(at) sonashousing(dot)ie.