‘Local authorities are under pressure to cut costs’: a Liverpool women’s refuge fought back and won

‘Amadudu’ means of colour; our name reflects the communities of Black women who our project represents and prioritises. We are a refuge which provides specialised dedicated support and shelter to Black and minoritised women and girls who have been subjected to violence. We opened our doors in 1992 following a lengthy battle with a housing provider and the local authority to secure the premises. The project was set up by a small group of local black women who came together to build an evidence base which demonstrated the need for Black specialist refuge provision in Liverpool.
At Amadudu we work with a range of cultural community organisations and statutory agencies such as social services, health professionals, children’s centres, and agencies supporting people dealing with addiction. We work closely with Savera, a local organisation which refers women to us, and who supports women fleeing forced marriage and honor based crimes. We also work with training and employment providers to enable women to take steps towards employment. We are involved in campaigns which seek to eradicate violence against women and girls.
Many of the women involved in Amadudu past and present are actively involved in political struggles to improve black and diverse communities, particularly in Toxteth as well as in Liverpool more broadly. This work focuses on poor housing, unemployment and worker exploitation, institutional racism in Local Authorities, and policing.
“The diverse communities we work with are a constant source of support”
Around 2007, when we feared that the refuge might lose its funding, former residents and their families launched a campaign to prevent closure. The diverse communities we work with are a constant source of support. We learned that Refuge had visited Toxteth to try and make ‘last minute’ connections with a number of agencies, and was bidding for the local refuge contract, despite Amadudu leading on the development of the new refuge, and our track record of delivering services since 1992. We had worked with a new landlord, developer and local authority to design a new-build refuge which would enable us to continue to deliver specialist services for Black and minoritised women facing violence.
We were informed that Refuge had won the contract. In response, we embarked on a campaign aimed at local commissioners and the City Council, writing letters, emailing local councillors and taking a group of women and children to a committee meeting to present our case. We were about to hold a community open meeting to shape a larger campaign event, when I received a phone call from the Head of Adult services who informed me that Refuge had stepped down from the contract. We were offered the contract and accepted. Half an hour later we met face-to-face with the Head of Adult Services and a local councillor who confirmed the offer. We returned to where our supporters were gathered at Kuumba Imani, announced the good news, and ordered food and drinks for a celebration!
Our long-running supportive network of professional black women working in various fields was instrumental in championing our situation. Their support was invaluable to avoid the closure of our vital trailblazing service and the loss of jobs and expertise in our staff team.
“Black women in Liverpool were fearful of reprisals by police against fathers of their children, and of social services removing children”
When Liverpool became the European Capital of Culture in 2008, the city received a lot of funding which helped to change the landscape. There was a new enthusiasm to put Liverpool back on the map as a key place for tourism, and the city centre underwent great physical changes. However, at that time Black women facing domestic violence weren’t able to access the services they needed. Black women were fearful of reprisals by police against fathers of their children, and of social services removing children. It was commonly known that black families were treated poorly in mainstream homeless provision, and consequently, women were forced to stay in situations of violence or to flit between a network of supportive friends and family members.
Women’s Aid reached out to Black feminist women organisers, and together we seemed to make headway in challenging the government and local authority bodies. This overarching co-operation gave smaller voluntary refuges a space to share, develop and have their voices heard. This collaboration enabled a re-shaping of the sector, in order to be more inclusive and accepting of black refuge providers. Local Authorities were held to account over their Equalities Strategies, policies and practices, and research produced by what was the Commission for Racial Equality (now the Equality and Human Rights Commission) revealed inequalities and provided recommendations to redress the impact on local communities.
“Slowly policy makers became more open to real consultation, and they began to listen to the women who were using services”
Feminist organisers gained support from key people with decision-making powers relating to health, education, and employment, which enabled them to shape an improved offer for local residents. Services such as Amadudu received financial investment through community development funds. Slowly policymakers became more open to real consultation, and they began to listen to the people who were using services. A system that enabled voluntary sector organisations to deliver their services was developed, alongside quality monitoring.
This process later changed to a more strategic investment model of procurement, which was not a system developed with voluntary third sector providers in mind. Over time, new council structures became more bound by red tape and less open to real inclusive contributions to policies and processes from the sector for securing funding and continuity.
In recent years commissioners have conducted ‘reality checks’ with staff, board members and service users, under the banner of shaping strategies and procurement processes; this is a method we have welcomed. However, there is still a lack of understanding by front-line staff in many agencies and policy-makers, many of whom are briefed on the basis of a few case studies, which do not usually provide enough insight to enable understanding of our work and the services women need.
“We continue to battle accommodation offers being refused when offers are made in ‘high-risk’ places that are known for high levels of racism”
For example, among commissioners, there seems to be a sense that ‘anything’ is better for women than being in short-term accommodation. However, there is a growing homelessness issue in the UK, and we continue to battle accommodation offers being refused when offers are made in ‘high-risk’ places that are known for high levels of racism. This environment exists because of the legacies of various areas in Liverpool which remain unaccepting of families from different backgrounds, or who were born outside of the UK. When an accommodation offer is refused, women experience either a lowering of the band of priority or an authority bidding on women’s behalf regardless of their preference. Politics is always present in the work of refuges where we are constantly challenging the system. Because of austerity, Local Authorities are under increasing amounts of pressure to cut costs. However, testing larger markets in order to undercut and deliver services is unacceptable.
At Amadudu we recognise that our work with a woman is a temporary part of her life. The ethos of the refuge is to avoid being ‘institutional’ as much as we possibly can; a lot of our work is done with individual women because each women’s experience differs dramatically. However, in the refuge environment staff encourage discussion and group activities. As a result of this, over the years many former residents who have resettled well in volunteering and employment have returned to assist with a range of activities in the refuge, as well as leading campaigns to help us keep our doors open.
As a short-term accommodation provider we can feel under pressure to ‘turn around’ residents quickly in order to accommodate more women, however, commissioners are slowly recognising that some women require more healing and preparation time in order to be ready to move on and sustain lives after experiencing domestic violence. In our evaluations, a key finding is that women have enjoyed their experience at Amadudu, and have found the support of other women very welcoming and useful. Many women remain friends after leaving our refuge; women have joined courses together, jointly set up self-employed initiatives, and continue to help each other with childcare support. The vast majority of former residents keep in touch to let us know how they are doing.
Amadudu is a member of Imkaan, a globally unique network that connects organisations that are led by and for black and minority ethnic women working towards ending violence against women and girls.
