Women & Homelessness
12% rough sleepers seen in London are women[1] 29% of single homeless people with support needs are women[2] 95% of female rough sleepers have been victims of crime[3] More than one in five homeless women have been in prison[4] “Women’s needs are very different to men’s when they are on the street. The way to […]
Motherhood
A survey for Crisis showed that one third of homeless women identified as childless were in fact mothers[1] 68% of the women in the Crisis survey said their children were temporarily being looked after by someone else, including local authorities; 31% said their children were permanently living with someone else[2] Around 18,000 children are separated […]
Mental Health & Wellbeing
76% of homeless women with mental ill health issues have slept rough, compared to 54% without mental health issues[1] The five most prevalent psychiatric diagnoses by St Mungo’s Life Works Psychotherapy service are: depression; PTSD; bi-polar affective disorder; personality disorder; psychosis-related[2] 69% of women were diagnosed by the St Mungo’s Life Works Psychotherapy service with […]
Childhood Trauma
11% of all people seen rough sleeping in London have experience of care[1] Approximately 10% of all girls and 5% of all boys experience some form of sexual abuse before they reach the age of 18[2] Up to 80% of young adults who have been abused meet the diagnostic criteria for at least one psychiatric […]
Domestic Abuse
63% of homeless women have experienced domestic violence; 40% have experienced sexual abuse[1] On a typical day, an estimated 3,615 women and 3,580 children are supported in refuge-based services in England. An estimated 16,815 are supported annually[2] 13% of the households accepted by local authorities to be owed a main homelessness duty said they lost […]
Prison
19% of women in prison were not in permanent accommodation before entering custody. 10% were sleeping rough[1] Around one-third of female prisoners lose their homes and often their possessions while in custody[2] 38% of women in prison do not have accommodation arranged on release. Only 11% receive help with housing matters[3] 82% of women serving […]
Prostitution
70% of women in street prostitution have a history of being in local authority care[1] 45% of women involved in prostitution report experiencing childhood sexual abuse. As many as 85% report physical abuse in the family[2] 68% of women in prostitution display symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder at a level seen in victims of torture […]
Substance Use
80% of homeless women experiencing alcohol dependency have slept rough, compared to 55% without an alcohol dependency[1] 90% of homeless women with drug dependency have slept rough compared to 47% without a drug dependency[2] 44% of homeless women who experienced drug dependency have squatted, compared to 12% without a drug dependency[3] 47% of all people […]
Women at St Mungo’s
24% of St Mungo’s clients are women[1] 11% have a history of being in care[2] 34% slept rough after leaving home to escape domestic abuse[3] 45% are mothers[4] 66% have a mental health problem[5] 55% have a substance use problem[6] 41% who have slept rough have been involved in prostitution[7] 28% have been in prison[8] […]
