WHAT TO DO IN AN EMERGENCY

If you share a home with the person who is abusing you or you are scared that they will continue to abuse you because they know where you live, you must decide whether you want to leave home for a short while or permanently or keep them out or away from your home.

In an emergency whether you are assisted by an organization or the police you must make sure you collect your essential belongings, any medication you or your children take and essential documents such as your’s and your children’s passports, birth certificates and benefit books.

If you have had to leave your children behind in an emergency you should call the police immediately and ask them to escort you home so you can pick up your children safely. When you return home it is advisable not to get into any conversations with family members. If your children are no longer at your home, or your partner and/or his family refuse to hand the children over to you or the police are not prepared to accompany you, seek urgent legal advice. (See section on Children).

Refuges provide a safe house for women and children who are fleeing violence. Refuges usually provide temporary accommodation for a few weeks until you decide whether it is safe for you to return home or find alternative long-term accommodation.

The kind of accommodation that you will be given depends on the refuge, but you will normally be provided with your own room to share with your children, and you will share other spaces such as a living room, kitchen and bathrooms with other residents.

You can enter a refuge whether you are single or married, with or without children. Please bear in mind that some refuges have policies about accepting boys between the ages of 11 to 13.If that is the case you must approach the local authority for help.

You can contact your local Women's Aid Refuge by calling the freephone 24 hour National Domestic Violence Helpline which is run in partnership between Women's Aid and Refuge: 0808 2000 247 (with a minicom service and language-line facility) or Refuge Crisis Line on 0870 599 5443.

The Women's Aid Federation Website has a list of its national network of refuges on its website. For this list and information on how to arrange refuge accommodation, what you can take with you to a refuge, funding a refuge space and refuge services go to the "Help" page at the Women’s Aid Federation website. You can also contact refuges through the Samaritans, the police, social services or the Citizen's Advice Bureaux.

If you contact Southall Black Sisters within office hours we can either provide you with telephone numbers of refuges or contact refuges on your behalf.

There are over 250 refuges across the UK. All refuges in the Women's Aid Network operate an open door policy for women and children in need. However some refuges are able to provide services addressing the particular needs of Black and ethnic minority women. For a full list of such refuges contact Women's Aid on their 24-hour helpline. If you are an advisor you can obtain the Women's Aid Gold Book: Directory of Domestic Violence Refuge and Helpline Services from the Women's Aid Federation (Tel: 0117 944 4411).

Women with immigration problems who are not entitled to benefits may have problems in accessing a refuge. See the section on women with immigration problems for more information.

Southall Black Sisters do not provide refuge accommodation or any other kind of temporary accommodation.

If you have children, your HPU should provide you and your children with temporary accommodation if you have been made homeless as a result of domestic violence. If you do not have children, your local authority may not give your priority. If this happens you should seek legal advice. If you are not entitled to benefits due to your immigration status the HPU will not help. See section on people with immigration problems.

If your local authority fails or refuses to help you, you should seek urgent legal advice on challenging them.

For further information on homelessness and your rights, contact Shelter's free housing advice helpline on 0808 800 4444 or visit website.

If you are unable to access a refuge place or temporary accommodation, supportive family and friends may be able to accommodate you and your children until you find somewhere else to live. However be aware that the person who has been abusing you may be able to find you more easily, and friends and family may put you under pressure to talk with your abuser or return to an abusive relationship.

Protection: staying at home or returning home

You may decide that you do not want to leave home or that you only want to stay away from home until you are sure it is safe to go back.

You may be able to obtain an injunction which is a court order preventing your abusive partner or relative(s) from contacting you, harassing you, threatening you or harming you for a specified period. If you share a home with an abusive partner you may be able to obtain an occupation order which is a type of injunction ordering your partner to leave your home and not return for a specified period.

You can obtain emergency injunctions (i.e the same or next day) if you can show that you or your children are at immediate risk of physical harm or that your abuser will prevent you from obtaining an injunction if they know you are planning to do this.

You should get legal advice as soon as possible from a family lawyer. You will qualify for legal aid (free legal advice and assistance) if you have no income or are on benefits. If you have a low income the solicitor will calculate whether you qualify for legal aid or you have to pay towards your legal advice costs. If your income is too high you must decide whether you can afford to pay the solicitor privately or if you can apply for an injunction yourself. You should take proof of your income with you ( ie benefits book, letter from benefits agency, last 3 months’ payslips or a letter from anyone who is providing you with free accommodation and support.)

You can also obtain advice and information from Rights of Women on 020 7252 6577 (telephone) or 020 7490 2562 (textphone) on Tues/ Wed/ Thursdays from 2 – 4 pm and 7 – 9 pm, Fridays 12 to 2 pm) where free telephone advice is provided by solicitors and barristers on family law issues. You can obtain a Domestic Violence DIY Injunction handbook in English, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi and Urdu from Rights for Women for £6.00 which shows you how to apply for an injunction yourself.

The Sanctuary Project

The government introduced the Sanctuary Scheme Project in which aims to make it possible for victims of domestic violence to remain in their home and feel safe.

The Sanctuary Project is a homelessness prevention initiative offered by a number of local authorities which may be able to offer you some or all of the following options to improve your safety and enable you to remain at home:

• A safety planning meeting with a specialist domestic violence advisor who can work with you to assess your needs and help you to decide whether the Sanctuary Project would help you.
• A quick and free change of locks.
• Quick (within hours) free additional home security measures such as window locks, fire-proof letter box, stronger doors.
• Adapting a room in your home so that in the event of your abuser breaking in you (and your children) can lock yourself into this "sanctuary room" and your abuser will not be able to break into the room. You can then use a telephone or emergency alarm system to call the local police for urgent assistance. This scheme is not means tested and may be offered to you whether you live in local authority, housing association or private (owned or rented) accommodation providing you have the permission of the landlord before making any structural adaptations.

This scheme helps to support women who have experienced domestic violence and wish to remain in their homes but it should not be seen as a guarantee of safety. You need to decide whether you will be safe when you go out of your home as well as whether you will be safe whilst at home.

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