The number of women and children admitted to shelters has dropped over the past nine years, a Statistics Canada survey reports.

The number of children staying in shelters fell by 25 per cent during this period, while the number of women declined by three per cent, it said. The most common reason for seeking shelter was to escape abuse.

The report is based on data from the latest Transition Home Survey, a bi-annual national survey of shelter use by women and their children.

From April 1, 2005 to March 31, 2006, nearly 106,000 women and children were admitted to shelters. Children accounted for 41 per cent of these admissions, and women, 59 per cent. 

Almost half these people went to transition homes, which provide temporary shelter for women and their children, while just over a quarter sought emergency shelter and the other quarter found second-stage housing and other types of accommodation.

During the nine-year period, 83 new shelters opened, bringing the total number in Canada to 553. Most of the new shelters are emergency-type facilities, which usually provide short-term refuge, typically not beyond a few days.

The number of transition homes declined over the period, to fewer than 250. That may be one explanation for the decrease in children using shelters, the survey indicated, because emergency shelters have fewer services for children than transition homes. Another explanation my be the decrease in the number of children in the population as a whole.

The report also presented a snapshot of users on one day during the survey period. On April 19, 2006, nearly 4,000 women and 3,500 children stayed in shelters. About three quarters of these women were fleeing abuse, frequently from a common-law partner or spouse. The other quarter sought shelter due to housing problems, mental health issues and addictions.

This 24-hour snapshot revealed that despite an increase in the number of shelters, there were still not enough beds for everyone seeking shelter. One shelter out of five had to refer women and children elsewhere. In total, more than 300 women and 200 children were turned away, most often because the facility had reached its capacity.