Being A Homeless Woman in the UK

The number of people sleeping rough in the UK is forever increasingly, having more than doubled since 2010. Being homeless, there are many struggles to face that other people wouldn’t even think about, and some of these struggles seem to be predominantly female struggles.

There is an argument to be made that homeless women are more vulnerable and at risk than homeless men, as a study by Crisis found that 58% of homeless women had been threatened with violence compared to 4% men. Unfortunately, a lot of society views women as weak and easy targets, which its magnified when you are sleeping on the streets, which is why many homeless women choose to partner with homeless men in the area for protection from violence.

Something that majority of women have to deal with is periods, which is near impossible to handle when you don’t have access to the necessary products or facilities. While there are some homeless shelters that offer these products for free, resources are limited, so many women are reduced to either crafting their own sanitary products or simply using nothing. There is a Bustle, and a video, that captures the difficulties surrounding this.

A major reason for female homelessness is domestic abuse, as many women find themselves with no other option but to sleep on the streets to escape a violent home. Browne and Bassuk (1997) found that 92% of homeless women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence. These women have to choose the lesser of two evils, which feels like a never-ending cycle of escaping harmful situations.

The reality is, these women need help; they live through abuse from strangers, constant discomfort, loneliness, sadness as well as being at risk of illness, violence and, in many cases, death. The life expectancy for homeless women is approximately 43, two years lower than men. With the rate of homelessness increasing, there are things we can do.

Organisations such as Homeless Link and Shelter provide more information and articles to learn more about the subject, as well as campaigns and donation pages where you can get involved. As people who are in positions where we can help, ask yourselves; why aren’t we?