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WHAG platform statements

The Women's Housing Advocacy Group invites you to read our platforms addressing the areas in need of the most attention for women's housing needs and homelessness to be solved. We identify the problems, and invite you to be part of the solution.

planning & designing housing for women

part of the problem

Women form the majority of occupants of lower income housing, and make up slightly more than 51% of the population in general, yet the planning and design of housing and communities remains largely blind to gender differences in housing needs.

Women still bear the primary burden for unpaid care giving and domestic responsibilities within the home. Women still earn less than men in the paid workforce, with the result that women have less money for housing and less security of tenure. Women are also more likely to be dependent on public transit, and thus have less access to jobs and services outside the central areas of large cities. Women-led households are more likely to rent, and tenants are less likely to have control over the spaces in which they live .

Other barriers to women attaining appropriate, secure, and affordable housing arise specifically from the physical and social needs that distinguish them from men: as primary caregivers to all generations of family, women need housing that is within close proximity to social infrastructure (schools, hospitals, and community centres). High levels of violence against women occur both in public (strangers) and private (partner, acquaintance, landlord assault) yet the design of most city, neighbourhood, open public spaces and housing fails to address this issue. Studies of alternative housing have shown that some women have a clear preference for women-only housing with moderate design alterations that address safety concerns. This has particular relevance to those more marginal populations of women who frequently wind up cyclically homeless due to exploitative conditions unwittingly built into the designs of mixed gender low income housing (Borderlands of Homelessness, 1996).

part of the solution

Low rise, mixed income developments with design features that allow for maximum supervision of children from within units (such as those designed around green space and playgrounds) can prevent some of the problems associated with high density concentrations of low income families raising children. Low rise and multiple bedroom units are required for extended family use, and fully accessible disabled units are required to integrate those with disabilities into the mainstream of our communities. Close proximity to social infrastructure, as well as well-travelled, well-lit areas with public transit routes are all part of the design features that should be considered in addressing women's housing needs. In addition, we recommend consideration of the following:

• Women-only buildings to increase safety and security for women and women-led households
• The internal design of houses needs to accommodate a range of households: disabled, single parent, elderly, three generation, several sharing adults, changes from one household into another.

This means:

1. Flexible designs (large kitchens that can accommodate several people cooking, removable dividers to make extra bedrooms);
2. More stacked housing and fewer narrow detached houses with lots of stairs;
3. Grants to make houses more accessible (grab bars in showers, wider doors) and to provide accessory units;
4. Removing zoning (including parking requirement) and social housing regulations that restrict paid work within homes, and limit housing units to 'single families';
5. Allowing social housing units to have 'extra space' for women who do paid work in their homes.

making housing more affordable through design

In Toronto, small 'grow homes', which can be expanded over time, can be encouraged in suburbs, and also in more central 'brownfield' developments. Encouraging apartments over shops along Main Streets is another source of affordable housing near public transit links.

This means:

1. Using government-owned land for innovative affordability schemes such as 'grow homes' projects, and setting aside a high proportion of these homes for women-led households;
2. Encouraging women's participation in self-built housing projects through peer support (e.g., funding Women in Trades to train women to participate in Habitat for Humanity projects)
3. Using property tax abatements to encourage social housing and affordable housing schemes that combine commercial and residential uses along Main Streets

more

about WHAG
Canada: more on the crisis

platform statements:

• sustaining, maintaining a supply of safe housing for women
• income security
• planning and designing housing for women
• support services

download :
WHAG platform statements

policy papers & deputations
No Religious Arbitration Coalition
week without violence
violence against women programs
if you are experiencing violence
women's housing advocacy group (WHAG)

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