Understanding the Crisis of Sexual Violence Among Homeless Individuals

Trigger Warning: Mentions of rape and sexual violence.

1 in 20 people sleeping rough will face sexual violence on the streets. This is unacceptable, and together, we must work towards change. Due to recent news stories, sexual violence, assault, and abuse have been on our minds.

Unfortunately, some individuals have inflicted life-altering harm on others with little consequence for quite some time. The systems put in place to protect us aren’t always effective, leading to horrifying situations.

People we work with often report sexual and domestic abuse as a cause of their homelessness. We see this most with the women we support, the majority of whom were forced to leave home out of fear for their safety.

But once people leave their unsafe homes, their risk of facing abuse often increases.

The Intersection of sexual violence and homelessness

People experiencing homelessness and rough sleeping are at a higher risk of sexual harassment and assault. About 7% of all people facing homeless will experience sexual assault at some point in their journey out of homelessness.

The daunting reality for women sleeping rough

Data from VAWnet.org.

Sexual violence often occurs before and during periods of rough sleeping. For many, it’s a trigger to leave an unsafe environment for the streets when no alternative is available. While sleeping rough, individuals often lack stability and protection from harm, which can lead to further assaults.

It’s easy to see how a vicious cycle might form.

To make matters more complicated, research into these issues is rare, despite how deeply it affects those we work with. That’s why, last year, we helped organise the first ever London Women’s Rough Sleeping Census.

This asked women directly about their experiences sleeping rough for the first time. It found that only 7% were accessing domestic/sexual violence support services despite the fact that 30% report facing violence.

Weekly Women’s Mornings

As part of our trauma-informed approach, we run a women’s morning every week. Some of the people we work with feel fearful of male clients due to poor past experiences. This dedicated time has resulted in many more women coming to us for support – we’re currently seeing roughly 50 women regularly attend our women’s space.

Strong community partnerships

We have strong connections with local domestic abuse services and shelters where we can refer the people we work with if they feel this is best for their wellbeing. But we know there’s more to be done.

Continuing Our Research and Advocacy

We recently took part in the second London Women’s Rough Sleeping Census which had some shocking insights. Our ongoing research aims to shed light on the full picture of the abuse faced by people sleeping rough and identify areas where more support is needed.

How you can help

Together, we can work towards a better system that prevents sexual violence against people sleeping rough and supports them on their terms when things go wrong.

The best way to be a part of this and stay up to date on how you can support this work is to sign up for our mailing list.

Join us and be part of the conversation around homelessness and sexual violence.