Bury Council are to create a new refuge close to the town centre, to provide safe accommodation for victims of domestic abuse.
The council has admitted that there has been no such accommodation available for many years, however planning permission has now been granted to convert a large property in the centre of Bury into ten separate apartments. Communal space such as kitchen areas and lounge areas will be included in the accommodation, whilst the existing structure of the building will be altered to suit the requirements of creating one-bedroom apartments.
Safenet and Calico will operate the facility and have made the decision not to publish the exact location of the accommodation for the protection of the people that it aims to help.
Bury council have published a letter in support of the planning application to convert the three-storey building and the council’s community safety manager, Tom Hoghton, said:
“The development of this refuge facility is a key priority for Bury Council as there has been no safe accommodation in the borough for victims of domestic abuse for many years.
Bury’s community safety partnership and strategic housing team have been working together over a number of years to develop safe accommodation in Bury.”
Under new duties put in place by the 2021 Domestic Abuse Act, the council was required to undertake needs assessments for accommodation-based domestic abuse support, the outcome of which showed that 20 to 25 safe spaces for victims of domestic abuse were needed across the borough. The 2021 Domestic Abuse Act brought in a range of measures that aimed to end the lottery that many domestic abuse victims faced when trying to find emergency accommodation.
