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Today the Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys has announced that she is making Rent Supplement a permanent offering for women fleeing domestic abuse. The initiative, which was first piloted after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, makes Rent Supplement immediately available to victims of domestic violence under a unique protocol which waives the conventional qualifying criteria. Applicants can immediately avail of the Rent Supplement for a period of three months without the requirement of a means-test, and this may be extended for a further three months for those who do meet the mean-test requirement.

Speaking today in response to the announcement, Lisa Marmion, the Services Development Manager at Safe Ireland warmly welcomed the Minister’s decision to consolidate the offering. Outlining the background to the scheme Ms Marmion explained

“After the outbreak of Covid, Safe Ireland made the case for unencumbered access to Rent Supplement for women exiting violence in the family home. In such circumstances many women leave without the documentation required to assess their means and to access social welfare benefits. We called for a simplified measure which would waive the means-test convention for a short period of time, and that could be deployed swiftly at local level.”

During the first Covid lockdown, there was a surge of demand for already over-subscribed domestic violence refuge spaces. In nine counties spanning the Border and Midlands regions there is no refuge at all. At the same time as the demand for refuge increased many rental properties had fallen vacant, as people living in cities returned to their hometown to work or study remotely. In light of these two coinciding dynamics, Safe Ireland proposed that the means-test convention for Rent Supplement be waived for a period of three months, and that the thirty-eight frontline domestic violence (DV) services across the country be authorised to act as local referral agents, alongside other nominated contact points in An Garda Síochána and the HSE. Following a period of negotiation between the Dept of Social Protection and the referral point agents, a protocol was finally agreed in August 2020 and the scheme was introduced.

Speaking on the significance of the initiative Miriam Kivlehan, Policy and Communication Manager with Safe Ireland stated that “Whilst Covid was the catalyst to pilot the scheme, its permanency is a very important component in the suite of responses required to support women, and children, to safety. In the first twelve months of its operation, fifty-five women availed of the Supplement for the three-month period. A number of beneficiaries continued to avail of the support for a further three-month period as they had by then established an entitlement in their own right. It has been a hugely significant measure particularly in the nine counties that have no refuge, and has, without doubt been a life-saving intervention. We are delighted that Minister Humphrey’s has acknowledged its role in empowering women to safety and its contribution to the whole of government response required to eliminate violence against women.”

Safe Ireland, working with 39 frontline domestic violence services, said that while it welcomed reports today that the cancellation of domestic violence 999 calls had fallen by two-thirds following the introduction of tighter controls on how calls were processed in late 2020, flaws of such a serious nature were not reducible to technologies.

Further details on local and individual practice, on information flow and on data implications are necessary.

Mary McDermott, CEO of Safe Ireland, said that these events contrast sharply with the positive on-the-ground effects of Operation Faoiseamh which explicitly supported local gardaí to prioritise domestic violence.

“This is clearly not a matter of policy but practice and technical infrastructure. More seriously, it also appears to expose remnant dismissive attitudes in our police service to coercive control and abuse in the home as merely a private matter rather than a crime. All gardaí need depth training on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence”

Furthermore, accurate recording of data directly effects how dv is understood. If calls were cancelled, repeating and patterned calls from survivors, which evidence coercive control, may not be recognised or escalated appropriately.

“We know that what happened with these calls is not Garda policy,” she said. “We have welcomed and actively supported Operation Faoiseamh, which prioritised the response to domestic violence survivors from the start of Covid-19. Our service members across the country have spoken about the importance of proactive Garda response to domestic violence and the developments that the force has made over recent years particularly. These call cancellations directly undermine this work.”

“However, we have also consistently reported identifiable and persistent regional pockets of bad practice, particularly amongst rank-and-file gardaí, where there would seem to be a continued lack of professional understanding of the nature, complexity or impact of coercive control and trauma.”

McDermott said that the cancellation of crisis calls are clear evidence of poor practice and show the need for immediate and substantive training on coercive control for all members of the police service, at all levels, but particularly for those in the call centres as the first point of contact for many survivors.

She also said that the cancellation of DV 999 calls further undermines Garda data on the crime of coercive control. Immediate and thorough-going review of these processes is necessary.

Airbnb has extended its partnership with Safe Ireland and Women’s Aid to provide free emergency accommodation for domestic violence survivors across Ireland. The decision comes as Ireland prepares to lift lockdown restrictions and emergency refuge services operate with reduced capacity and an increase in demand.

The initial partnership launched in June 2020 as Ireland prepared to reopen from the first lockdown and has provided 2,000 nights of emergency accommodation to date.

Domestic violence services have continued to see high numbers through 2021 with many survivors presenting with highly complex needs and heightened trauma from months of living with their abusers in extended lockdown.

The need to ensure safe social distancing in specialist domestic violence accommodation services has reduced capacity by 25% and there is concern that demand may increase further over the summer months. Last year July and August were the busiest months as women are often more reticent to leave homes whilst children are in school.

Safe Ireland’s ‘Tracking the Shadow Pandemic’ reports carried out through 2020 show that on average, 180 women and 275 children looked for emergency accommodation every month between March and December. But in that same time, 2,159 requests for refuge could not be met by services, indicating the importance of having other accommodation choices available.

Mary McDermott, CEO of Safe Ireland said,

“Domestic violence is the leading cause of family homelessness. The availability of safe, affordable and stable housing is fundamental not only to a woman’s ability to escape an abusive partner, but also to remain safe and independent. This partnership with Airbnb has provided a crisis-time option for some women to escape violence and we are delighted that it is continuing. The accommodation provided is designed to be temporary but it provides critical respite for services and women to make longer term plans.”

 Sarah Benson, CEO of Women’s Aid said,

“Women’s Aid is delighted to know that this vital support to women and children is being extended by Airbnb. The need and demand for creative responses to the needs of those subjected to domestic abuse is only increasing. Our 24hr National Freephone Helpline, which responded to 38% more calls between March and December 2020, acts as a direct referral point to a wide range of local and regional services and supports for women subjected to abuse all over Ireland, and we will continue to signpost callers in need of accommodation to all of the domestic violence services participating in this partnership.”

Airbnb will continue to work through its hotel partners to provide temporary accommodation, free of charge, when specialist emergency accommodation is not available. Domestic violence services throughout the country will assess the safety needs of survivors before arranging bookings into the temporary hotel accommodation.

All those accommodated as part of this initiative will continue to be closely supported by domestic violence specialists. Safe Ireland will coordinate the initiative with its frontline services and support from the Women’s Aid National Freephone Helpline. All accommodation costs are sourced and paid for by Airbnb.

Jean Hoey, Public Policy Lead for Airbnb in Ireland, said,

“We have much to look forward to as lockdown restrictions ease and a return to a sense of normality seems possible again. For those facing domestic abuse however, freedom will always seem out of reach. It’s a privilege for us to be able to support the vital work of Safe Ireland and Women’s Aid to ensure that anyone seeking help can be offered a safe space from where they can hopefully take the first steps towards rebuilding their lives.”