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    Women-only tower block in Acton to open next summer - BBC News
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    Women-only tower block in Acton to open next summer – BBC News

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    32 Comments

    1. Life_Put1070 on

      Are women disproportionately affected by the housing crisis? I ask this as a feminist. I look around at the way women seem to band together for accomodation (I live in an inclusive all women house myself), and how male friends have had issues finding a place in a house share.

      I can see the wage gap argument, of course. And we, as a society, seem to have assumed the validity of exclusionary womens-only housing, so this obviously doesn’t fall foul of the equalities act.

      Eh, more affordably housing can’t be bad, even if it’s only for women. That’s for sure.

    2. VunterSlaush_117 on

      I’m not too sure how safe I’d feel being a known victim, living in what will no doubt become a well known building in a well known location, surrounded by other known victims.

      Security doors are next to useless and I can’t see ‘affordable housing’ having round the clock security. Don’t disagree with the logic behind it but surely advertising it this much is a bad move.

    4. Rob_Cram on

      Unpopular opinion but I think this is a REALLY STUPID IDEA. We live in an age of information and having marked buildings like this will no doubt attract unwanted attention. In addition to being not as “safe” a haven for domestic abuse victims as it may appear, unless it was run like a PRISON, and said women never ventured outside its grounds or had any external guests, deliveries etc.

      The article states that it is for female abuse victims AND single women on the housing waiting list. What happens if they have partners, what happens if some of those vulnerable women invite problems into the building intentionally or otherwise.

      In my view, these things really need to be dynamic and assimilated into regular housing so that residents blend-in and not STAND OUT LIKE A SORE THUMB.

      I also imagine that thanks to the publication of this address (thanks UK PRESS For publicising **Brook House in Acton – “**The original estate at Brook House, in Gunnersbury Lane, opposite Acton Town station”), it could become a hotbed for attracting undesirables.

    5. Deadliftdeadlife on

      I’m assuming it’s being labelled as woman only but it’s actually not, male victims of DV and abuse could also stay there.

      Hope I’m not wrong. Male victims really need a helping hand too.

    6. Fresh_Parsley9198 on

      Fair enough. Let’s see how it goes. Hopefully the rent will be as genuinely affordable as they’ve claimed it will. It’s mad how triggered people get over these things, does it really matter if its solely for women? Narp not really.

    7. Harrry-Otter on

      I can’t help but feel like announcing “this building is going to be full of often quite vulnerable women” might prove to be a bit of an own goal from a policing and security PoV.

    8. LatelyPode on

      I wonder if I’ll get downvoting for suggesting making a few men only tower blocks

    9. TokyoBaguette on

      That feels like a magnet to predators just like half way houses post supported accomodations are magnet to drug dealers.

    11. South_Leek_5730 on

      In theory this sounds like a good idea but in practice it’s a terrible idea.

      There is a reason women’s DV refuges are setup the way they are. They are hidden and they are a stepping stone for women to recover and move back into the world after. This could be that place after but you just announced that’s what it is so it no longer becomes a safe place. Refuges are hidden so former partners can’t find them.

      Then you have the fact that some women have male partners so this building will not be women only unless you are going to ban men from entering or living there which is a whole new conversation. Advertising as women only is also going to attract undesirables.

      Whoever came up with this idea clearly did not think it through. How does this work with equality laws? Why should someone move above someone else on the housing list based solely on gender? No issue with victims of DV moving up the housing list at all as that’s the right thing to do.

    12. Impossible_Policy_12 on

      According to the government’s research, a third of DV victims are men, yet we never see *anything* supporting them. Could we have a tower block to support men too? Why the segregation at all?

      This won’t work because women have male partners and male friends. How will they be managed? What about male children, and even more so when they become teenagers?

      I think there are probably much better ways to ensure women attain equality and safety in our society rather than such a blunt instrument as this, and ideas like this take away from perhaps some much better but overlooked important work done by women’s organisations.

    13. robtheblob12345 on

      I can just see some inevitable trans v terf bust up in the pipeline. Hopefully not though

    14. mars-jupiter on

      I’d be interested to know how this works regarding things like needing stuff fixed like plumbing, electrics etc, and also deliveries. Since those are jobs that tend to be mostly done by men, is there some sort of authority here that seeks out women to do these things?

    15. SuddenReturn9027 on

      Some of the comments are extremely sad, even those from women. And the headline is extremely misleading. It’s for domestic abuse victims

    16. samueIlll on

      If I recall correctly this is housing for women who have been victims of sexual assault, so I’m not too upset about this.

    17. F_DOG_93 on

      Why is it women-only tho? I thought people wanted equality? Does this mean I can ask for a men’s only gym? Or a men’s-only office?

    19. Rob_Cram on

      The bottom-line is these types of segregated projects whilst on the surface are trying to solve a problem, don’t actually tackle the root causes which some might suggest is a better way forward. As a man, it also vilifies men more; especially as most men are sensible and caring towards women.

      I’ve been looking at women only carriages in transport across the globe, and this too kicks the can down the road. Whilst they do reduce incidents and might make women feel safer travelling at night especially or during “rush hour”, there are other solutions which basically boil down to COST.

      For example. TFL could just adopt a stance of no standing on trains as a safety concern. Have more trains running so people don’t cram into carriages. They could employ more chaperone staff on trains etc. Or better yet, get employers to stagger when people come into work. So that transport systems aren’t overworked.

      It all costs money, but none tackles the root cause of those few men that feel the need to act in a bad way towards others. I draw the same parallel with this project.

    20. tommmmmmmmy93 on

      > build housing to house women escaping domestic violence

      Something best kept on the down-low, ya know?

      > its THIS BUILDING right here. The big block in the picture. THAT ONE!

      This just seems like a dumb fucking idea. This isn’t even the first one. There was a few built back in the 50s to house just women. Wanna know what happened? Crime. Lots of crime. Lots of prostitution.

    22. Rhinofishdog on

      Another project using public money that specifically excludes me from ever benefiting under any circumstances! Amazing!

      It’s like austerity but it’s only for the lower caste 🙂

      I’m also certain that none of these women will have a father, male child, boyfriend or male friends. It’s going to work perfectly in practice!

    23. NewPower_Soul on

      The place will be a magnet for male gangs and anti-social behaviour. A terrible idea.

    24. FloydianChemist on

      So people will be totally chill with trans men living here, right? Big burly blokes with beards and biceps who just so happen to be biologically female? Because after all, our transphobic clusterfuck of a government and judiciary has insisted that biological females (sex) are literally *indistinguishable* from women (gender). Well, the TERFs made their bed, so now they can fucking lie in it.

    25. Interesting_Try8375 on

      Headlines like this are just a distraction while those born to obscene levels of wealth continue to take even more.

      Domestic abuse survivors are not the problem

    26. Nice-Cat3727 on

      Is it going to be another death trap because the builders wanted to save 30,000 pounds?

    27. appletinicyclone on

      Seems like a really dumb idea to advertise the location that specifically has vulnerable women there

      Nevertheless there should be more women only places available. Getting away from DV can be very difficult

      And yes before anyone mentions it there really should be male only shelters available as well when they’re recipients of DV too.

    28. DrDespondency on

      Remind me to launch my feminist coffee shop here once I’ve finished hanging washing out. I’m going to be totally surrounded by women. Good work. Very good work indeed

    29. Ok_Afternoon_3084 on

      If it’s paid for, and of course built by women, and only women, do what you like… Wanna be sexist, go ahead, no point arguing anymore. So let them lock themselves away from society in their man made building, paid for by men, powered by oil that was drilled by men, connected to the internet via under sea cables laid by men… Because you don’t need men…

    30. RutabagaElegant3215 on

      For context Acton is where a big population of some ethnic minority lives in. It makes sense to me to have a women-only block there so that these poor women do not have to move community or children’s school while staying away from DV at home.

    31. West_Category_4634 on

      Wait…so the plan is to put a bunch of vulnerable women all together in a block of flats….I’m not sure this has been thought through….

    32. seStarlet on

      I thought r/unitedkingdom was all about protecting women? Or was that only when they needed “protecting” from the people you don’t like?