The Government has cut millions from Tower Hamlets’ income, but the Council has fortunately won a small grant which will restore a tiny drop of the missing funding.
The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) set aside £3.5 million for local authorities – and Tower Hamlets has been awarded just under £65,000 from that fund to support victims of domestic violence and abuse.
Cllr Rabina Khan, a member of the Independent Group on Tower Hamlets Council, welcomed the award, but warned, “Many of the people who will be helped by this fund will also be victims of government policy such as the bedroom tax and the welfare benefit cap. I am glad to see this sum coming into the Borough, but we need to see this Administration do much more to help women in Tower Hamlets – as well as campaigning for restoration of fair funding. I did ask Cllr Shiria Khatun about this funding bid at a full Council meeting, but she would not discuss it further – so it is hard to see where the current Administration is going with this work.”
The money will be spent by the council’s community safety team, which will work with two specialist organisations (Rights of Women, and Against Violence and Abuse), on a pilot project which offers the most vulnerable victims emergency accommodation and help from a support worker.
Priority will be given to women experiencing multiple disadvantage – complex drugs and alcohol needs, homelessness, mental health issues, street based sex workers or those with limited financial means.
John Biggs chose not to comment on the wider issues and stuck to the confines of the project, saying, “We are pleased to be awarded this funding which will allow us to develop a pilot project to provide emergency accommodation for those residents who most need it. We will use this funding for victims of abuse who find themselves in extremely vulnerable situations through no fault of their own.”
Cllr Shiria Khatun, Cabinet Member for Community Safety, also focused on the single issue, adding: “With this additional finance from central Government, we will be able to fund emergency bed spaces and provide a specialist support worker to disadvantaged people. By working with the police, Rights of Women and AVA, we are better placed to assist women who have experienced abuse and provide them with comprehensive legal advice.”
•Rights of Women is a women’s charity which works to empower women by informing them of their legal rights. Find out more on: http://rightsofwomen.org.uk/
•AVA is a charity which works to end all forms of violence against women and girls. find out more on: http://www.avaproject.org.uk/