UNDER-threat women’s refuges in East Lancashire have been saved following a government U-turn.

Supported accommodation, which includes women’s refuges, will remain exempt from Local Housing Allowances (LHA) until 2019/20.

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Former chancellor George Osbourne announced in November that LHA was to be capped which meant the refuges were in danger of closing.

It comes after Lancashire County Council backed out of withdrawing a Supporting People grant totalling £88,730 to Pendle Women’s Refuge.

Shigufta Khan, chief executive of Blackburn and Darwen District Without Abuse, said that the news was fantastic.

She said: “If refuges were not exempt from LHA then it would have had a huge impact on them, something that would have been very difficult to recover from.

“Refuges mean that women who have suffered stalking and harassment have a safe place to go so they do not have to face their abuser every day, so they are vital.

“We welcome this news.”

John and Penny Clough, parents of Higherford nurse Jane Clough who was murdered by her ex-partner Jonathan Vass in 2010, opposed the refuge cuts programme across the county.

Following the threat from county hall to withdraw the Supporting People grant, Mr Clough said: “There’s a lot at stake if the refuges start to close.

“The money that they spend on supporting victims will not be as cost-effective as funding the refuges.”

Minister for welfare reform Lord David Freud confirmed also that after 2019/20 a new funding model will be introduced which will ensure that refuges continue to be funded at current levels.

Pendle MP Andrew Stephenson welcomed the news from the government.

He said: “The government values the role of supported housing and is committed to encouraging further development to meet future demand.

“Supported accommodation plays a vital role as a safe, stable and supportive place to live for many vulnerable people.

“I now hope this will be some much-needed certainty to our local refuges.”