Safe Mother’s Day 2026

What Mothers Are Managing

Mother’s Day is Sunday, May 10, 2026.

Across British Columbia, there are mothers planning time with their children, while there are also mothers planning around risk due to violence by an intimate partner.

Some mothers are living with intimate partner violence. There are mothers who have left the father of their children and are navigating the risk of lethal violence post-separation. There are mothers who are returning to an abusive relationship because there are too many barriers to living free, such as no affordable housing, no childcare and threats of losing children in family court. There are other moms who are trying to hold things together long enough to get through the week.

For all mothers living with intimate partner violence, their children are part of all of this.

In many homes, violence is already present, and the children hear it, see the aftermath, notice changes in tone, movement, and routine by their father/father figure, and they are walking on eggshells, too.

Thousands of mothers in BC right now are making real-time decisions about how to reduce harm, keep things steady, get through the day, and stay safe themselves and their children.

Mother’s Day is considered a time of celebration, and for hundreds of women who access BWSS each month, their experience of motherhood continues inside these conditions. Many are already connected to systems; there may be police reports, child protection files, or court orders in place. The information exists. What happens next depends on how it is acted on.

This week, BWSS is marking Safe Mother’s Day 2026.

So, we have written to mayors and city councillors across the province again. Since 2023, we have been engaging with municipalities to recognize that safety for mothers and children is part of community safety. Housing, policing, services, and coordination all shape what happens next.

We are also sharing tools that reflect what women are already doing, assessing risk, documenting what is happening, limiting contact where possible, planning for safety, and reaching out for support.

Alongside this work, My Sister’s Closet is marking the week with a simple message – Safety Changes Everything.

That message is reflected in the t-shirts now in stores and worn by volunteers and community members. And letters to Mothers placed at our stores.

It is both a slogan and a statement of fact. When safety is present, decisions change, mothers and their children move more easily, and their lives change. When safety is not present, everything is shaped around managing risk.

Mother’s Day does not look the same in every home.

For many mothers, it includes careful planning, constant awareness, and decisions made under pressure. It includes children who are part of these moments.

This is already happening.

Support is available.

Battered Women’s Support Services continues to work directly with women and children living with and leaving violence, providing crisis support, legal advocacy, and safety planning.