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<p>This Department does not make estimates of the number of refuge places for those
fleeing domestic abuse. Decisions on the provision of accommodation for victims of
domestic abuse are for local authorities. We expect local authorities to commission
services based on the needs of their communities, taking account of locally available
data sources.</p><p> </p><p>Government does not directly fund domestic abuse refuges,
however, this Government has invested £6.5 billion to help vulnerable people through
housing related support. A proportion of this money will be used by local authorities
to commission refuge services. In addition we have made over £500 million available
since 2010 to local authorities and the voluntary sector to prevent and tackle homelessness
and rough sleeping including support for victims of domestic abuse.</p><p> </p><p>In
November 2014 we made available £10 million (2014-16) for local authorities, working
with specialist domestic abuse service providers, to stop the closure of refuges and
improve and grow existing provision. We also issued new statutory guidance that makes
clear the practice of providing refuge to support only to local victims is unacceptable
and which set out clear standards that refuges services should meet.</p><p> </p><p>The
dynamics of domestic abuse mean that accommodation can play an important role in the
resolution of interpersonal abuse and conflict. This is why the homelessness legislation
in England provides one of the strongest safety nets in the world for families with
children and for vulnerable people who become homeless through no fault of their own.</p><p>
</p><p>We also fund UKRefugesOnline a UK wide database of domestic violence services
which supports the national 24 hour free phone domestic violence helpline. This service
enables those working with victims of domestic violence to identify appropriate services
and potential refuge vacancies around the country so that victims can get the help
they need as quickly as possible.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, this Government has ring-fenced
nearly £40 million of funding for specialist local domestic and sexual violence support
services until 2015. This funding is used to part-fund 54 multi-agency risk assessment
conference co-ordinators and 144 independent domestic violence advisers. We have piloted
and rolled out Clare's Law and domestic violence protection orders; extended the definition
of domestic abuse to cover controlling behaviour and teenage relationships; run two
successful campaigns to challenge perceptions of abuse; and placed Domestic Homicide
Reviews on a statutory footing to make sure lessons are learned from individual tragedies.
More recently we have added an amendment to the Serious Crime Bill at Commons Committee
stage to create a new offence of domestic abuse. The amendment closes the gap in the
current legal framework to capture repeated or continuous coercive and controlling
behaviour, specifically where that behaviour takes place in an ongoing intimate partner
or inter-familial relationship.</p>
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