Women and Multiple Disadvantage resources
Supporting women experiencing homelessness and multiple disadvantage often means responding to complex and overlapping needs. This page brings together practical resources to help staff address issues such as domestic abuse, trauma, criminal justice involvement, and family relationships, while also supporting their own wellbeing and creating safe, gender‑responsive services. If you are dealing with urgent safeguarding concerns, start with the “Immediate Safety and Safeguarding” section.
To make it easier to find what you need, resources are grouped under eight headings:
Immediate Safety and Safeguarding
Domestic abuse resources
- MARAC referral form – template for referring high‑risk domestic abuse cases.
- Complicated Matters toolkit – guidance on domestic abuse, substance use, and mental health.
- Safe Lives DASH risk assessment – tool for assessing domestic abuse risk.
- Standing Together safety planning guidance – practical steps for safety planning.
Other forms of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG)
- Am I Being Stalked? tool – helps identify stalking behaviours.
- Sexual violence self‑help resources – coping strategies for survivors.
- Beyond the Streets resources – support for women selling sex.
- Specialist support for women experiencing harmful practices, and advice for professionals, across London – specialist helpline details.
- Specialist advocacy for BME women experiencing domestic abuse and harmful practices – community training on harmful practices for BME women.
- Savera factsheets – information on forced marriage and honour‑based abuse. Be mindful that they only provide services in the Liverpool area so the helpline listed in the factsheets won’t be relevant.
- What are Harmful practices? Factsheet pdf 221 kb
- What is Honor Based Abuse factsheet pdf 252 kb
- What is forced marriage factsheet pdf 182 kb
- What is FGM factsheet pdf 203 kb
Women Experiencing Multiple Disadvantage
- Keeping Us Safer toolkit – toolkit for supporting women facing homelessness and multiple disadvantage.
Trauma and Emotional Wellbeing
- WGN trauma self‑help guide – practical exercises for managing trauma symptoms.
Criminal Justice System
- Women in Prison resources – support and advocacy for women in the justice system.
Relationships and Family Contexts
Women as Mothers
- MATCH Mothers – support for mothers separated from their children.
Women in Couples
- Homeless Couples toolkit – guidance for supporting couples experiencing homelessness.
- Homeless couples relationship toolkit – provides guidance for staff working with couples, requirements for accommodation options for people, and outlines recommendations for supporting couples.
- Couples exit planning checklist – A document put together to support professionals working with couples in Westminster since COVID 19. Summarises many of the key points outlined in the Homeless Couples and Relationships toolkit.
Self‑Care and Staff Wellbeing
Creating Gender‑Responsive Services and Spaces
- Women’s Spaces toolkit – guidance on creating safe spaces for women in homelessness services.
- Gender‑responsive hotels guidance – advice for hotels/hostels supporting women during COVID‑19.
Further Reading and Resources
- Women and Multiple Disadvantage – Reading list – additional articles and toolkits.