§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the targets are for numbers of refuge places for women in(a) Coventry and (b) the West Midlands, and how much refuge provision for women there is in each. [92345]
§ Mrs. RocheTargets are not set centrally for refuge places for women. It is for local authorities to assess need for refuge places in their areas and to take steps to address that need. Supporting People Commissioning Bodies have recently completed shadow strategies setting out their assessment of service provision for local people, including for women experiencing domestic 629W violence, and how they will address gaps in supply. The Government's steer to Commissioning Bodies on preparing these strategies encouraged them to give particular consideration to provision for high risk or vulnerable groups, such as women fleeing domestic violence.
Data on refuge provision was gathered in September as part of the preparations for the Supporting People programme. In Coventry, 35 household spaces in women's refuge provision for women at risk of domestic violence were recorded. In the West Midlands, 474 such spaces were recorded.