16 Days of Activism, Guest Blog from Hannah Boyle

For many, violence from an intimate male partner becomes a pathway into homelessness, leaving women navigating a world that often feels indifferent to their experience. At Simon Community Scotland, we witness these struggles every day, and our mission is clear: to provide safety, support, and hope to women who need it most. We provide a range of services specifically designed for women and a fundamental priority for us is to provide support that is truly gendered, trauma informed and recognises women’s unique needs.

Earlier this year, in May 2024, we proudly opened our new co-designed community hub for women, The Connect Hub. From its inception The Connect Hub has been designed and developed alongside women who have experience of homelessness and we provide a space offering safety, connection, compassion and opportunities. We walk alongside women who often experience a difficult combination of structural and systemic violence in an environment where women are often described as ‘complex’ or ‘vulnerable’ without recognising the at times impossible circumstances women need to navigate. National statistics show that 1 in 3 women will experience violence within her lifetime. For women we support, their experiences of gender based violence are staggering, pervasive and often experienced daily.  This is the Connect Hub’s first year and first opportunity to contribute to the global movement of the 16 days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence. At Simon Community Scotland, we want to take this time to reflect upon our commitment to support women at the intersections between homelessness, gender inequality, and violence. This is not a new reality - every day, our staff and volunteers see firsthand the impact of a patriarchal system that has devastating impacts to many women we support. 

A Place of Safety and Healing

The Connect Hub was intentionally developed to provide a space of security for women experiencing or at risk of homelessness. We support women daily who are rough sleeping and living in temporary city centre accommodation.  The levels of violence women experience both within intimate relationships and within the community is huge and something women are having to deal with daily. #NoExcuse…there is no excuse but this is very much a real reality for the majority of women we see and support. 

From the warmth of the physical environment to the kindness of the people within it, we’ve designed a space where women feel seen, valued, and, above all, safe. Through a range of support we work to meet women's practical, emotional and psychological needs. We recognise how often a lack of access to the most essential of items, such as clothing, food, toiletries, digital access, can further compound women’s circumstances. This coupled with essential connection, care and compassion and an approach to ensure women have agency, choice and voice is central to what we try to do everyday. 

Yet beyond meeting basic necessities, we strive to ensure that The Connect Hub is a thriving community space. From art workshops and yoga to creative writing and cooking classes, our activities are designed to foster connection. These moments of creativity and community are transformative, offering a chance to escape, and link with women’s interests and creativity. 

We find ourselves extremely privileged that women continue to turn to us, to place their trust in spaces like The Connect Hub and an approach that truly meets women where they are, versus where it may be perceived they should be. For all women, but particularly women impacted by enduring violence, patience, understanding and compassionate approaches require nurturing, so women can return time and again to a place of safety where they feel validated and seen. Purposeful, meaningful opportunities are key to that and we continue to embed opportunities for connection, hope and support into our model.

A Commitment to Lasting Change

In the first 6 months of delivering support we recognise that we have to be flexible in our approach, we must be accessible, we have to be visible for women. We are constantly asking ourselves, what more we can do for women who continue to experience gender based violence? We also know there are so many women we are not seeing, will not see.  We require change, urgency and action to address the unimaginative amount of violence women have to experience everyday. It will take all of us, at all levels - prevention, crisis led, structural, personal - to demand a world where women are safe. We try to do our small bit by leaning in, listening, building connections and relationships, but we know we need to do so much more. 

Women deserve to live in a world where they are not at risk. We must demand it.