Artwork shines a light on women's homelessness
St Mungo'sAn art installation has been helping to highlight the experiences of women facing homelessness, which campaigners say is significantly undercounted in official figures.
The display at the Arts by the Sea festival in Bournemouth, Dorset, on Friday and Saturday was designed by Lindsay Lyall, service manager for homelessness charity St Mungo's.
Each pair of orange shoes was attached to a QR code linking to a real-life story, which Lyall said helped to "shine a light on experiences that are often overlooked".
The latest Women's Rough Sleeping Census found a 39% increase in the number of women identified as sleeping rough compared with the previous census.
St Mungo'sOne of the stories shared through the display was that of Julie, whose name was changed for anonymity.
She arrived in Bournemouth after she fled stalking and intimidation and said she was "really scared to sleep on the streets" before she received support.
Lyall said: "Every day our team meets people with remarkable strength and resilience who are navigating extremely difficult circumstances.
"Through this piece, we hope to encourage understanding, start meaningful conversations, and remind people that homelessness is a human issue that affects our whole community."
St Mungo'sSara Turner, Senior Service Manager for St Mungo's in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole area, said women do not rough sleep the same way that men do.
"They tend to go to public places, sometimes they'll walk around all night," she said.
"Rough sleeping is dangerous for everyone but for women on the streets, whether hidden or not, they face frightening levels of sexual harassment, abuse and violence."
Turner said many have experienced domestic violence in the past and live with trauma and other complex needs, which act as "barriers" to reaching out for support.
She said people do not tend to understand the "depths of homelessness" and assume it is just people "sleeping in a doorway".
She said last year's census captured 46 females across the area who were homeless.
"There are many forms of homelessness and women's homelessness is real, it's just not as visible."
