Beginning to explore the potential of âstaying at homeâ
Keeping safe and staying independent: Beginning to explore the potential of “staying at home” schemes for women with disabilities who have experienced family violence Dr Angela Spinney – Swinburne University Dr Melanie Thomson – University of Melbourne Presentation Introduction The research on which this provisional paper is based Family violence, disability and the links between them Homelessness for people with a disability NDIS Consideration of the potential of ‘staying at home’ schemes for women with a disability Conclusion Homelessness Prevention for women & children AHURI project – FR published end of 2012 Family violence continues to be the major driver of homelessness Escaping violence is the most common reason people seek help from specialist homelessness services The project evaluated innovative homelessness prevention measures introduced in Australia and England and the extent to which they have enabled women and children to safely remain in their homes, avoiding homelessness. Inter-relationship of service provision Conceptual Framework (Spinney and Blandy, 2011) 4 Findings of the AHURI research Emerging orthodoxy that women and children should not be made homeless as a result of experiencing domestic and family violence, and this should inform policy The most effective homelessness prevention schemes for women and children who have experienced domestic and family violence integrate legal issues, housing and welfare provision Australia should expand the provision of homelessness prevention schemes that support domestic violence victims to remain in their own home rather leave the home in order to exit a violent relationship Disability People aged under 65 who have; Intellectual disability: a person experiences difficulty communicating, learning and retaining information Physical disability: may affect, either temporarily or permanently, a person's physical capacity and/or mobility. Mental Illness: affects a person's thinking, emotional state and behaviours. Sensory disability: affects one or more senses; sight, hearing, smell, touch, taste or spatial awareness. House with No Steps, 2015 Disability in Australia 4.2 million Australians are estimated to have disability or 18.5 % of the population (AIHW, 2015). 1.4 million Australians or 6% of those people have a profound disability (AIHW, 2015). People with disabilities experience poor quality of life outcomes compared to that of the ‘general population’. The increased risk of women with disabilities to FV Family violence; A pattern of coercive behaviour used to maintain control over a partner, through a combination of physical, emotional, sexual or financial abuse, enforced social isolation and intimidation (Cunningham & Baker, 2004) Substantial body of literature shows that women with disabilities are at a higher risk of experiencing family violence – estimated to be 40% higher risk Difficult to measure, but estimated that 40-90% of women with disabilities experience family violence (Brownbridge, 2006) Barriers to women with disabilities leaving their home Financial – lower incomes Practical -Restricted choices in the private rental market - Having to leave a home adapted for their needs Attachment to neighbourhood; support networks, healthcare facilities Refuges and housing services often lack the ability to meet the needs of women with disabilities No ‘exit points’ for women with disabilities from their home where the violence occurs Implications of NDIS NDIS – will be a national system of disability support which claims to focus on the individual needs and choices of people with disability. First Report of the Parliamentary Joint Standing Committee on the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) - one of the challenges that face the NDIA, and a wide range of NDIS stakeholders is the availability of suitable housing for people with disabilities Chairman of the NDIA has stated that people with disabilities cannot use NDIS funding to meet the costs of providing housing (e.g. paying rent or mortgage payments Based on the current levels of provision, the NDIA estimates an unmet need for affordable housing for between 83,000 and 122,000 NDIS participants By 2019, it is estimated that 154,000-193,000 people with disabilities on low incomes may need housing assistance (CHFA, 2014). So, what do we know? That women with disabilities are particularly vulnerable to experiencing family violence That for women with disabilities it can be very difficult for them to leave home to escape the violence That we may be talking about a large group of women; about 2 million women in Australia are disabled and a significant percentage may be experiencing violence from someone in their home NDIS may see capital funding for adapted housing but not revenue funding Would ‘staying home’ schemes help? Finding ways to enable women to stay safely and independently in their own home with the perpetrator removed would seem to make sense in terms of the very high and increasing demand for adapted housing. Very little research on this matter; Evaluation of the bSafe emergency personal alarm project found that “bSafe provides a risk management option that can support women with a disability to achieve safety at home’ (Taylor & Mackay, 2011) – but small sample Conclusion and further thoughts Seems to be a topic worthy of further research, but; How will we get to this very vulnerable group of women with disabilities who are experiencing domestic violence to gain their views? How could ‘staying at home’ schemes reach out to women who may not be able to contact them without assistance? Will NDIS be a source of effective care and support packages once the perpetrators has been removed? Thank you Angela Spinney Swinburne University of Technology Melanie Thomson University of Melbourne
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