The Haven is our overnight drop-in space for women, open on Mondays and Wednesdays. It’s a 12-month pilot project to support homeless and vulnerable women in the centre of Cambridge, offering hot food and drinks, a shower, clothes washing and a safe place supported by an experienced support worker and security guard.
Why a Women Only Service?
Women make up the majority of the ‘hidden homeless’ population meaning their needs are overwhelmingly unmet in the majority of homeless services nationally. Women’s needs are also much more complex and vastly different to men’s.
National data shows that 1 in 5 women who have experienced violence become homeless, compared to just 1% of women who have not experienced violence. Being a victim of violence is a traumatic experience, and women can develop a range of support needs in addition to their homelessness.
ITAC and the WHAG have worked with partner organisations on the ‘Women’s Homelessness Census’ which was trialed in Cambridge in autumn 2023. The information gathered highlighted the significant gaps in service provision for women experiencing homelessness and housing precarity in the city. Additionally, rough sleeper counts in Cambridge have identified a high level of homeless women, significantly higher than the national picture.
How The Service Works
The Haven is an overnight drop-in space, run by ITAC working in partnership with Cambridge City Council, for homeless and vulnerable women in Cambridge. In 2023, ITAC received funding from Cambridge City Council’s Rough Sleeping Initiative Fund. as well as philanthropic funders to support the 12-month pilot project. The ‘Haven’ is the first project of its kind in Cambridge, offering a trauma-informed, safe and welcoming overnight space for homeless and vulnerably housed women in Cambridge city centre. The space is designed to help women reconnect and regain trust in services and access vital support on their journey out of homelessness. The Haven provides women with hot food and drinks, a shower and clothes washing facilities, hygiene and sexual health products, as well as support and advice.
During the pilot, the Haven will be open for two nights per week (Mondays and Wednesdays) managed by two members of staff and volunteers from across the community. The aim of the pilot is to enable ITAC and the Council to gather further information about the need for a service like the Haven and identify ways to expand the project.
In the first six months of opening, the Haven has already welcomed many women, offering kindness and safety overnight. Many users of the space have expressed how helpful it has been, with one woman expressing how ‘coming here is the highlight of my week’.
Building on the success of the first few months the plan is to add some daytime hours and for the space to be used as a place where women an connect with key services.
Following years of advocacy and research by ITAC, the WHAG, the City Council and local homeless and women’s charities, we are thrilled that funding has been made available to support the growing number of homeless and vulnerable women in Cambridge.
If you would like to find out more about the project or know someone who might benefit from accessing the Haven, get in touch with haven-info@itac.org.uk.