Strengthening Support for Women Facing Multiple Disadvantage: Leicester Women’s Network Meets at City Hall
Last week, organisations from across Leicester came together with a shared purpose: to strengthen support for women experiencing multiple disadvantage. Hosted at City Hall and led by Action Homeless and other core partners, the latest Leicester Women’s Network meeting brought together representatives from sixteen local organisations committed to improving outcomes for women facing overlapping and interconnected challenges.
A Collaborative Space for Learning and Action
The Leicester Women’s Network was created by a group of core partners including Changing Futures Leicester, Action Homeless, Juniper Lodge, Saffires, New Futures, Turning Point, Leicestershire Police and Juniper Lodge in 2024 in response to a rising number of women seeking help for homelessness and related issues. The network provides a vital space for partners to deepen their understanding, share learning, and collaborate on solutions. Women experiencing multiple disadvantage often face overlapping challenges — including homelessness, substance misuse, mental ill health, and contact with the criminal justice system — many of which are rooted in trauma, poverty, abuse, and structural inequality. Too often, these women fall through gaps between services, making coordinated, trauma‑informed support essential.
Spotlight on Local Services Making a Difference
Each meeting includes a ‘service spotlight’, giving organisations the chance to showcase their work and highlight emerging needs.
This month, the network heard from:
- Changing Futures Leicester and the Leicestershire Police Sex Worker Team, who shared how their partnership approach is helping them reach more women and maintain strong engagement.
- Norton Housing and Support, who outlined their plans for a specialist hub offering safe accommodation and wraparound support for women and their children.
These insights highlighted the power of collaboration in creating safer, more accessible pathways for women seeking stability and support.
Safer Sex Working Packs: Early Insights
Action Homeless also provided an update on the Safer Sex Working Pack initiative, which aims to help women who are sex working in the city to work more safely. Over the past six months:
- 20 packs have been distributed by 7 partner organisations.
- Many women receiving packs were experiencing hidden homelessness — including sofa surfing, staying in disused buildings, or living in B&Bs.
- Housing emerged as the number one concern for women.
- 90% of women who received a pack were already engaging with three or more services.
These early findings underline the complexity of women’s experiences and the importance of multi‑agency support.
Launching the Leicester Women’s Rough Sleeping Census 2026
The meeting concluded with the launch of the Leicester Women’s Rough Sleeping Census 2026 campaign. Led by Action Homeless and Changing Futures, the census will take place over seven days in September 2026 and aims to build a clearer picture of women’s homelessness in the city.
Evidence shows that women experience rough sleeping differently to men — often in more hidden, less visible ways. The census will take a gender‑informed approach to locating and surveying women, helping partners better understand the scale, nature, and impact of women’s homelessness locally.
Organisations across Leicester are invited to support the planning and delivery of the census in the months ahead and can register their interest here.
