Fears for Highland women fleeing domestic abuse under plans to close refuge
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The Highlands could be left with just one refuge for women fleeing domestic abuse under plans to close the existing premises in Inverness.
Fears have been raised after it emerged that Inverness Women's Aid is preparing to close its 12-flat refuge, leaving a six-flat refuge in Dingwall – which is already under pressure – to serve the entire region.
Under the changes, outreach support will be provided from a new office in Inverness which will also help women to obtain safe accommodation in the community.
Confusion over the refuge's future earlier this month forced Inverness Women’s Aid and Highland Council to issue online statements after the council posted "misinformation", saying the service was no longer available and pointing domestic abuse victims instead towards its emergency accommodation service
Amid a public backlash, Inverness Women's Aid stated long-planned positive developments were under way while the council said in its post it had received no prior notice of the decision.
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Concerns have now been raised within the women's aid network about the plans.
Claire Marcello, general manager of Ross-shire, Skye and Lochalsh Women's Aid, maintained refuge provision in the Highland capital was needed.
"We feel that the closure of the Inverness refuge is a grave mistake that will leave many women and children at risk," she said.
"It is also likely that the closure of Inverness refuge will have an impact on our own refuge as we will struggle to cover the entire geographic area of the Highlands, being the only refuge.
"Since between January and March this year, Dingwall refuge has been at full capacity and this is in part due to taking referrals from Inverness which has not been taking admissions to refuge or referrals to refuge since I started as general manager in December 2022.
"March this year has been Ross-shire Women's Aid's busiest month in years and we are seeing not only a spike in referrals but an increase in multi-agency risk assessment conference (MARAC) referrals, which are those women most at risk."
She said a refuge not only provided accommodation but also specialist services including liaising with other agencies, such as criminal justice, mental health, housing, social work, welfare, and legal and also offering support, counselling, children support work and advocacy.
She acknowledged not every woman fleeing domestic abuse wanted to be in refuge but added: "It is a choice which needs to be available.
"Often women who come into a refuge have nowhere else and would be unsafe if they were housed in communities because they are at high risk."
She said the geography of the Highlands with its close-knit rural communities meant an added complication.
"Often a woman in a rural community cannot be given accommodation in her home area because there is no confidentiality or they are still coming across the perpetrator," she said.
"Inverness is a safety net which covers the whole of the Highlands."
She said that although women would be offered alternative emergency accommodation, this usually meant B&Bs which had no cooking facilities and were unsuitable for families.
One woman, who has 18 years experience of working alongside women's aid, called for a moratorium on the plans to close the Inverness refuge plus an explanation.
"It is going to put a lot of pressure on Ross-shire and other women's aid groups to find alternatives," she said.
In a statement, Inverness Women’s Aid (IWA) said there will be important and positive developments in the next few weeks which had been planned over the last four years.
It also worked closely with partner agencies such as the police, council and housing services to ensure it continued to support women and families in the most responsive and helpful way possible.
"This new way of working will mean providing outreach support from a new office base in Inverness and continuing to support women to obtain safe and suitable accommodation within the community," a spokeswoman said.
"Helping women and families to find accommodation is, and always has been, only one part of the support services offered by IWA.
"Outreach support is the largest part of what we do as a service. Highland Council and housing associations have always supported our service users by providing accommodation and will continue to do so."
It said the refuge's occupancy rate decreased from 78 per cent in April 2021 to 18 per cent in February 2023 resulting in a significant drop in housing benefit income.
"Our recent experiences have highlighted that the traditional 'refuge' model has not been working well for some time and this is verified by feedback from clients who have found the refuge environment increasingly difficult, particularly during the covid period," the spokeswoman said.
"We work with clients to ensure they have choice in terms of their housing situation and often clients indicate their preference to be accommodated in a community setting.
"As well the changing needs we have seen from our clients in terms of the provision of refuge accommodation, it is no longer financially viable nor a sustainable option in the long term."
The spokeswoman said the new model, similar to those used by many Women's Aid services across Scotland, was also a financial necessity to ensure the service's long-term survival.
It is in discussion with Highland Council about existing local authority funding.
As the story develops, we will continue to give updates.
