24/7 provincial toll-free crisis line 18779770007
Women’s Shelters Canada (WSC) formerly Canadian Network of Women’s Shelters and Transition Houses (CNWSTH) distributes an annual survey to provide a snapshot of a day of the life of Canadian women’s shelters, it continues to confirm a need for further resources!
The Manitoba Association of Women’s Shelters has developed this Colouring/Activity Book for children who are entering shelter. It is intended to provide an age-appropriate way of helping children to understand and talk about their experiences. Throughout the book, the children are introduced to Ashley and Andrew, as well as their stuffed animals Mosoca and Makwa. These four characters take children through topics such as entering the shelter, safety planning, understanding that the abuse is not their fault, what abuse is, and feelings.
This activity book is designed for staff/caregivers to do with children, providing a mixture of activities for children of various ages. The activities are all meant to be interactive between the staff and the children.
Download a copy of the Activity Book
In an attempt to better understand the needs of women accessing shelter services and to improve the services offered, MAWS members undertook Learning Through Our Clients Eyes. a report funded through Status of Women Canada. MAWS was able to reference similar studies conducted in Southwestern Ontario and Saskatchewan. As with other shelter associations we intend this paper to be a beginning point for discussion among shelters and other stakeholders.
This report is divided into three sections. Section One reports on community agencies’ knowledge and perceptions of shelters; Section Two is demographical information on who is using Manitoba shelters; and Section Three is women’s own words and experiences with shelter services.