Shared Domestic Abuse Refuge in the Age of Housing First: An Outdated Model?

Refuges are the most well-known accommodation response to domestic abuse. They initially emerged in the 1970s to provide a safe space for women seeking immediate escape from abusive partners. The original provision largely involved different households sharing accommodation and facilities, reflecting the scarcity of resources available to provide such a response, but also an ethos of feminist solidarity. Homelessness responses more broadly have begun to move away from shared forms of accommodation in light of growing evidence discrediting their effectiveness and appropriateness, but refuges for domestic abuse survivors have largely escaped this critical interrogation and instead remained supported as an essential and therapeutic model. Based on qualitative data gathered via key informant interviews in England and Scotland, this paper examines the merits and demerits of this kind of shared accommodation and reflects on whether the housing needs of domestic abuse survivors are as different from those of other groups facing homelessness as the domestic abuse sector appears to hold. We conclude that the critiques of shared and congregate living that are so persuasive as regards hostels apply with at least equal weight to refuges. Domestic abuse survivors have similar requirements for privacy, autonomy, choice, and control over their living environments as other populations experiencing or at risk of homelessness. While domestic abuse survivors may have specific needs for intensive, gender-informed professional and peer support, this can be achieved without utilizing outdated shared models of accommodation.