The Experience of the NGO “Mother’s Home”: How to Organize Temporary Shelter for Women with Children

In Ukraine, 1,118 specialized services provide support to women who have experienced domestic violence. These include 59 shelters, 111 day centres, 112 crisis rooms, 114 primary counselling services, 698 mobile teams, and 13 hotlines. Last year, the National Social Service of Ukraine recorded 90,288 reports of domestic violence (compared with 181,904 in 2024).

One of the organizations supporting women with children who are facing difficult life circumstances is the NGO “Mother’s Home”, which joined the Ukrainian Child Rights Network in 2026.

To prevent children from entering institutional care and to keep mothers and children together, the NGO “Mother’s Home” established the Mother and Child Support Centre “Mother’s Home” in Kyiv.

The Centre provides temporary accommodation for pregnant women, mothers with infants, and women with young children who are facing difficult life circumstances. This includes women who have experienced domestic violence or are at risk of losing custody of their child or giving up their child.

The Centre can accommodate up to 8 women and 10 children at a time. They are supported by a team of around 10 professionals. A crisis room is also available for women with children who urgently need a safe place to stay.

In May, the team of the NGO “Mother’s Home” held a webinar where they shared their practical experience of organizing this service — from setting up the space to working with women and children. We have brought together the most important recommendations and practical insights from the webinar in this article.

This material was prepared by the Ukrainian Child Rights Network within the project “Strengthening Civil Society to Ensure Children’s Rights”, implemented jointly with the international humanitarian organization Save the Children in Ukraine with financial support from the Government of Sweden (SIDA). The content of this material is the sole responsibility of the Ukrainian Child Rights Network and does not necessarily reflect the views of Save the Children or the Government of Sweden (SIDA).