On any given night, there are over 800 single homeless women in DC.

In the Spring of 2017, the Women's Task Force of the Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH) worked with the Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness (TCP) to analyze gender and household data from the 2017 Point in Time Count.

This data was very revealing, showing that there were several differences between the experiences of homeless men and women, and that homeless women experienced mental illness and violence at far greater rates than men do.

Armed with this initial data, the Women's Task Force conducted a separate study in the Fall of 2017 to better understand the needs of homeless women. Below is the full report and the Executive Summary of the data.

Initial Highlights

• Two-thirds of women with histories of domestic violence and trauma report an additional act of violence against them while they were homeless. "There is no longer a distinction between women experiencing 'domestic violence' and women who are seeking safe housing because they are homeless" (2017 DC Women's Needs Assesment Report, p20).
• Programs to support homeless women must work from trauma-informed model and provide trauma services.
• Housing and services must be designed to meet the needs of all women, including young women, senior women, lesbian and bisexual women, transgender women, and non-binary and gender nonconforming individuals