Sask. government gives YWCA Saskatoon $1M for 2nd-stage housing for women escaping violence

The Saskatchewan government announced an additional $1 million in funding for second-stage housing in Saskatoon Tuesday.

In the provincial budget in April, the provincial government announced $876,000 over three years for five second-stage shelters.

Second-stage housing is meant as an additional step after an emergency shelter for women and children escaping interpersonal violence and abuse, with wraparound supports to help them.

Bronwyn Eyre, the province's justice minister and attorney general, made the announcement outside of the YWCA Saskatoon building. She said the new funding would add 33 second-stage units at the YWCA, each with one, two or three beds. 

"Crucially, it will provide much needed stability for women and their children," Eyre said.

"Reunion with children is always, I'm told, the number 1 motivator for women in shelters." 

According to Statistics Canada data, Saskatchewan has the highest rate of intimate partner violence in Canada among provinces.

In 2019, more than 5,300 women in Saskatchewan reported intimate partner violence, and more than 5,700 reported non-intimate partner violence.

YWCA CEO Cara Bahr said the housing program will offer more affordable and long-term support to women. In an 18- to 24-month period, women will have access to counselling, education opportunities and programs for their children.

Also according to Bahr, the YWCA turned away more than 4,000 women and children in 2021 due to limited space.

"There was no safe space for them and no place for them to go," said Bahr. "So what we've also found is that transitional supported housing is so incredibly important in terms of further stabilization."

The $1 million in new funding is on top of $27.5 million already committed to interpersonal violence and abuse. 

This is the first budget in which the provincial government has provided operational funding for second stage housing.

"There's been a lot of investment over the years in that first stage, namely emergency shelters, but there was an understanding that second stage is that next wraparound step," said Eyre.