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REFUGES FOR WOMEN, CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE IN SCOTLAND
Appendix C: Topic Guide for Interviews with Women
1. Moving in
Can I start by asking how long you have all stayed in this refuge? Have you stayed here before/in other refuges? How many times? What's the longest period you've spent in a refuge?
How did you find out/know about the refuge? (probe - family/friends, Helpline, WA publicity, police, sw, other vol org, housing, health)
Did you find it easy or difficult to get in touch with the refuge? How quickly/easily were you able to move in? Did this cause any problems for you? Were you told anything about the refuge before you moved in? Were you/your children able to bring your things/pets to the refuge?
Why did you decide to move into a refuge? What other accommodation options did you have? Given the choice, would you have preferred not to have moved into a refuge? What other type of accommodation would you have preferred? Have you had to leave home before and not used a refuge? Why not? What did you do instead? How did that work out? Why use a refuge this time?
Why move into this particular refuge? Did you move into your first 'choice' refuge? If not, why not? Would you have preferred another refuge? Why? Did you know about the range of different types of refuges - probe - shared house (with own bedroom or ensuite; sharing kitchen/livingroom/bathroom; communal area even if no shared facilities); own flat in WA close; own (dispersed) flat or house) Were you given/would you have liked a choice of refuges?
Would anything in particular make it easier for you/other women to get in touch with/move into refuges? (probe - accessibility/availability of information, transport, location, attitude of other agencies, attitude of WA workers, children's needs etc.)
2. Expectations
What did you expect a refuge to be like? Were you worried/concerned about anything in particular? (probe accommodation type, other residents, workers, location etc.) Were you hoping for anything in particular? What about your children?
What were your first impressions of the refuge ? (probe -accommodation (private and communal space), workers, other residents, facilities for children, location etc.) Did they confirm/contradict your expectations? Did anything in particular surprise/please/disappoint you when you first moved in? What about your children?
Were you given information about how the refuge is run/facilities etc when you first moved in? Was this enough/appropriate?
Could anything be done to make the moving in process easier for women and their children?
3. Experiences
What is the best/worst thing about living in this refuge? Is there anything in particular you would/wouldn't change? How does it compare with any other refuges you've stayed in?
What's your accommodation like? Best/worst thing about it?
What private space have you got (probe- room, en-suite, self-contained flat)? What's it like? Is it large/private/nice/clean/safe/quiet enough? What's the décor/facilities like? Do you have a window? A lockable door? Can you alter heating/lighting/ventilation? Do you have space for your own things/children's things? Would you like anything in particular changed? What would be your priority? Do you have anywhere to go if you want to be on your own?
How do you/your children feel about sharing a room (prompt - safety/security, sleeping, changing, space to be alone)
Are there any areas you share with other families? How do you feel about sharing (probe- bathrooms, kitchens, living rooms, children's rooms). What are the shared areas like? Are they large/nice/clean/safe/quiet enough? Would you like anything in particular changed? What would be your priority?
Is there a communal area (even if no shared facilities)? How/when do you use it? What's it like? Is it important/good to have a communal area or are you not bothered? Why/ why not?
How is cooking/eating organised? (prompt- staff involved, communal or individual)
Would you prefer a place on your own (dispersed), or is it good having other women/families around (shared or clustered)?
Are the workers around much? How much contact do you have with them? Is that enough/too much? How do they treat you/get on with the women?
Were you hoping for support from workers when you moved in here/how important was support to you? Do they give you any help? What type (probe - practical, legal, financial, emotional, material, with children) Is it what you expected/need/want? Is there any more/different help that would be useful? Do you have a named worker? Do you have choice/control over the support you are given? How does the help they give you/way they treat you they compare with other agencies?
How much contact do the women staying have with each other? How do they get on? Is that always the case? Do the women help each other/give each other support? Were you hoping for that mutual support when you moved in? What form does it take? How important is it? How does it compare to any help given by workers? Are there sometimes tensions? What do these tend to be about? What would help ease them?
Are refuges good/bad places for children? What do you think the best/worst things are for them? What support/facilities are there for them? Is it appropriate/enough? (probe - children's rooms, toys, outside play areas, availability/quality of children's workers) Could any more be done to help them/help you with them? Do the children get on together? Do they help/support each other? Are there problems? Is it different for older/younger, boys/girls?
Do women get a say in how the refuge is run? (prompt - role in developing general rules and policies; also day-to-day issues of cooking, cleaning etc.) Would you like more of a say/not too bothered? How could women best have their say?
Have your views/needs regarding type of refuge you would like changed over the time you've been here? (probe- like communal support, then want own place)
4. Impact on Other Aspects of Life
Is there anything about staying in this particular refuge that has affected your health, employment/education, family or friendship networks. (prompt on location/accommodation type/services available)
Is there anything about staying in this particular refuge that has affected your children's education, friendship networks, family relationships, health/ well-being (prompt on location/accommodation type/services available)
5. Looking Back
Are you now glad that you decided to use the refuge, or do you wish that you'd been able to resolve your problems in another way? In the same circumstances, would you use a refuge again? What would make you change your mind?
Would you recommend to friends/family that they use a refuge if they needed to? Why/why not? What if they were changed/improved?
Why do you think some women with abusive partners don't use refuges? Would it be a good idea to encourage them to/how could that be done? Are there any groups of women who find it particularly difficult to gain access to a refuge/for whom refuges aren't appropriate? How could that be resolved?
6. Moving On
Can you stay here as long as you like/need, or does the refuge expect you to move on? How long would you like/expect to stay here? Where would you like to move to next? ((probe - tenure, partner, friends/family, shared/self contained, cluster/dispersed, furnished/unfurnished, location etc.) Are you getting help in organising that? What type of help/is it enough? How confident are you of getting what you want/need?
Would you like any continuing contact/help from WA workers after you move? What type/how often/how long for? Will they be able to give you that? What about other sources of support (probe - sw, vol orgs, family/friends)
What about other residents - do women often keep in touch when they move on?
7. Priorities
What is the most important thing that makes a refuge a good/bad place to stay?
The Government is planning to spend some money on new refuges. Is this a good idea? What about other approaches - exclude abusers, supporting women who return to abuser, local auth/HA temp or permanent accom?
What type of refuges should they fund? (probe - shared house (with own bedroom or ensuite; sharing kitchen/livingroom/bathroom; communal area even if no shared facilities); own flat in WA close; own (dispersed) flat or house) What should the top priority be?
What about existing refuges, could they be improved? What should the priority be in improving them? (probe - accommodation type and standards, support from staff, facilities for children)
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