Home for Good
Home for Good (2017-2020 WAGE)
A funded research collaboration between Alice House, Elizabeth Fry Society of Mainland Nova Scotia, The Marguerite Centre and YWCA Halifax investigating the barriers women face when trying to access safe, secure and affordable housing in community once they have left the transition and second-stage housing systems.
The major findings of our research included:
- A lack of existing housing research that used a GBA+ in data and policy analysis
- The absence of a coherent and connected “Housing System” for women to access when looking for housing support
- Women’s pathways through housing insecurity are non-linear, do not follow a predictable trajectory, and are often cyclical in nature
- Women carry the burdens of debt from poverty, instability and prior relationships when trying to secure safe and affordable housing
- There is a clear link quantitative and qualitative link between the Child Welfare System and Homelessness which is unaddressed in policies and programs
- Women with histories of addiction, intimate partner violence, and those with children have additional considerations of safety, affordability, and location in the community when looking for market housing
- Landlords often contribute to the stigmatization of women coming from housing programs, are not trauma-informed, and often do not understand the unique safety concerns of women’s housing