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Thousands of women and children seek protection in women’s shelters
A woman sits on a bed in a women’s shelter. Thousands of women and children also sought temporary protection in shelters in 2022. photo
© Maja Hitij/dpa
As desirable as an ideal family world may be, the reality is often different. The numbers in the nationwide women’s shelter statistics remain high and are not even complete.
Thousands again last year due to domestic violence, threats, coercion and other attacks Women and children sought protection in women’s shelters.
As can be seen from the current nationwide women’s shelter statistics from the Women’s Shelter Coordination Association, which is supported by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, 6,444 women and 7,460 children lived temporarily in protective facilities in 2022. Information was available from 179 women’s shelters. Since there are around 400 facilities in Germany, the association assumes that the total number is more than twice as high.
Almost three quarters of the women affected were between 20 and 40 years old. On average, they stayed in the shelter for 70 days. Women with one child stayed the longest on average (77 days). Women with more children and without children stayed in the facilities for less time.
The association criticized the “precarious and inconsistent financing” of women’s shelters in the country for decades. There is still a lack of more than 14,000 places and many women have to pay for their own protection. In 2022, one in four residents would have to cover the costs of their stay in full or in part themselves.