The housing crisis is trapping women in domestic violence situations between homelessness or staying with their abuser, according to the National Women’s Council.
The council has made a submission to the Child and Family Homelessness Action Plan, which aims to reduce the amount of time spent in homeless emergency accommodation by children and their families.
The National Women’s Council wants stronger legal protections for women and children in situations of domestic, gender-based, or sexual abuse to be able to remain in the family home.
It says that women seeking to escape domestic violence with their children “are faced with stark choices — often having to choose between homelessness or returning to their abuser”.
Ivanna Youtchak, Senior Policy Coordinator for violence against women at the NWC (National Women’s Council), joined us on The Agenda to tell us more about this.