Practical Applications of a Women-Centred Approach to Housing Design 

The BC Society of Transition Houses has recognized a crucial need for research and resources dedicated to housing solutions for women and children affected by violence. To address this, the Society has brought together an interdisciplinary team that includes women who have experienced violence. This team worked together to create an innovative toolkit that focuses on women-centred housing design.

Project scope and expected outcomes

The BC Society of Transition Houses is a leader in providing housing solutions for women and children who have experienced violence. Their unique research focuses on the design of long-term housing tailored to the needs of women impacted by violence.

Recognizing the lack of research and resources in this area, they assembled an interdisciplinary team. This team includes professionals from the housing, anti-violence, architecture and housing development sectors, as well as women who have experienced violence. Their research was guided by one central question: What are the spatial design solutions that can meet the housing needs of women and their children who have experienced violence?

Innovative Women-Centred Housing Design Toolkit

Since 2018, this collaborative team has worked together and developed an innovative Women-Centred Housing Design Toolkit which is available on the Society’s website. The toolkit, grounded in women-centred design principles, showcases evidence-based designs and floorplans. It aims to address key issues identified in their research, including:

• lack of safety and security
• insufficient and inefficient spaces
• inadequate provision of amenities and services
• the limited availability of environments that support healing, comfort and community connections

The research and toolkit have already made a significant impact. They’ve:

• established a women-centred lens in housing design
• enhanced the capacity of the housing and anti-violence sectors
• supported these sectors’ efforts of increasing high quality, suitable and accessible housing supply which are also technically feasible and financially viable

Next steps: Improving understanding of women-centred design

To build on their work, the BC Society of Transition Houses plans to launch the Practical Applications of a Women-Centred Approach to Housing Design project.

The main goal of this work is to identify 3 women-centred housing design case studies in urban, rural and Indigenous communities. This will be done in consultation with the communities and local anti-violence organizations. A key part of this work involves conducting:

• workshops
• focus groups
• site visits facilitated by experienced community engagement researchers

Insights from these studies will then be used to create best practice resources. These resources will be based on feedback provided during the workshops and focus groups, as well as input from women who live in and use these spaces.

Expanding impact through collaboration

The main deliverable of this project will be additional online resources. These will be integrated into the existing women-centred design web-based platform. The new resources will be disseminated in webinars promoted through key organizations, many of whom are actively involved in supporting affordable and community housing sector, including:

• the BC Non Profit Housing Association
• the Aboriginal Housing Management Association
• Women’s Shelters Canada

These resources will also be targeted to community and social housing providers as well as anti-violence organizations who are building new projects or retrofitting existing housing.

This research project showcases the power of collaboration and women-centred approaches in creating appropriate, accessible and long-term housing solutions for women and children experiencing violence.