Lack of affordable housing in N.B. keeping victims of domestic violence in shelters longer

New Brunswick women and children fleeing domestic violence are staying in emergency shelters longer because they can’t afford a safe place of their own.

It’s a reality Renee Charron said she sees daily.

Charron is the executive director of Crossroads for Women, the largest transitional housing service for women in the province.

“Literally everything is at stake, including their lives,” said Charron.

When women in crisis enter transitional housing at Crossroads for Women, it's meant to be a safe haven for a few weeks until they can find long term housing, Charron said.

But with fewer affordable options on the market, more women are being forced into the organization's limited subsidized housing units which also fill up quickly.

Less than ten years ago, the organization was regularly filling its 17 emergency beds.

Today, the organization has grown and its 41 beds are often full, leaving staff no choice but to refer women to other emergency shelters.

The Serenity House, which serves Kent County, is one of the smaller shelters welcoming the overflow of women in need form the Moncton area. It has space for 10 women.

While there are few vacancies at the moment, associate director Valerie Roy-Lang said they don't last long.

“There’s very limited availability of affordable housing in the Kent County area,” she said. “So sometimes they’re forced to have to move far away and there aren’t women that have a lot of money a lot of the time.”

Roy-Land said staff at the centre are also overwhelmed by an influx of newcomers in need of services.

"They don't want to have to say no to someone," she said. "Sometimes we don't have a choice. It definitely is a heartbreaking experience."

The Violence Prevention Centre was just recently able to hire someone to look after children who come into emergency shelters while their mothers are in counselling sessions or occupied.