Women and children need to have a place when they need it.
More women and children in British Columbia will have an affordable, safe and secure place to go, as 150 homes are either opening or are under construction in four different locations throughout the province.
Three of the new women’s housing projects will be operated by non-profit providers that specialize in housing and supports for women, including transgender women, Two-Spirit and non-binary people, as well as their dependent children who are experiencing or are at risk of violence.
Support staff will provide residents with a range of services, including emotional support and safety planning to make sure women and children receive the help they need during a difficult and stressful time.
Location of new spaces:
New Hazelton – 11 transition spaces and seven units of second-stage housing, expected to open in spring 2023
Lower Post – six units of safe home and second-stage housing and 10 supportive homes, expected to open in spring 2023
Duncan – 33 units of second-stage housing, construction started in early 2023
The Province is committed to ensuring women and children leaving violence have safe places to recover and rebuild their lives. In 2018, government committed $734 million to create the Women’s Transition Housing Fund to build 1,500 new units of much-needed housing, including transition houses, safe homes, second-stage and long-term housing. This is the first significant investment in housing for women and children leaving violence in more than two decades.
These projects are part of a multi-year action plan being developed by the Ministry of Finance’s Gender Equity Office and the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General to help end gender-based violence. Government undertook engagement in 2022 to inform the plan’s ongoing development.
Additionally, in Port Coquitlam an 83-unit development for women-led families operated by Atira Women’s Resource Society is expected to welcome residents in spring 2023.
These developments are also part of B.C.’s 10-year, $7-billion housing plan. Since 2017, the Province has funded more than 40,000 affordable homes that are complete or underway for people in B.C., including nearly 900 homes for women and children leaving violence.