‘​I’d have gone back to him’: why women’s refuges can’t afford more cuts

The stories of abuse survivors offer a window on to the crisis in the women’s sector. So why is the government considering funding changes that are a matter of life and death?Fifteen years ago, when Lynn fled her abusive partner with her six-month-old baby, she was housed in a homeless shelter because there was no space at a women’s refuge. When she arrived, staff asked her where her possessions were, allotted her a single knife, fork and spoon and begrudgingly dragged a dirty cot ou