Refuges

[Brokenbutterfly]

Advice about refuges

I am a UK national but have been living in Holland. I am suffering bad domestic violence. I have plans to leave but I know he will follow me, and he will stay in the UK until he can find me and bring me back. He has friends and family there.

So some questions

1. I have physical disabilities, can I ask for a wet room? For a ground floor place?

1. Will they house me the same day I call or should I call on advance?

1. Do I have any say at all in where they place me?

1. How much support is given? Do they help you move on?

1. How long can I stay? Short term or medium term?

Anything else you can think of that will help me I would be truly grateful. Thank you. xx

Hi Op, sorry you are going through this

1. some refuges will have accessible rooms but maybe not a wet room

obviously this will limit what spaces are available 2 its unlikely you will be housed the same day although it will depend- eg it can take longer if a woman has specific needs 3 you can always decline a place of course! but there may simply not be a place where you want to go 4 definitely you will be given support- to sort out benefits, to understand and heal from the abuse and when you are ready to move on 5 length of stay depends massively -some women only sta a few nights, others stay for months

www.womensaid.org.uk/
check this out
it has lots of useful info
do not tell him you are thinking of leaving
make sure he can't see what you have been looking at online (use safe search etc)
if you have ever reported him to the police etc, make sure you have some record of this, it may be useful

good luck