The Context
Domestic abuse affects 2.3 million adults and represents a third of all violent crime recorded by the police. Only 18.9% of women who experienced partner abuse reported the abuse to the police. There is evidence that this is due to suspicion of the police and the judiciary. The 2020 Harm Report and the 2023 Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s report on Family Courts highlighted the unfair treatment of victims in court and very poor understanding of domestic abuse.
Savings to the tax payer of addressing this crime are significant: the Home Office has estimated the total cost of domestic abuse for victims identified in a single year at £74bn
Government Priority
Government has prioritised addressing domestic abuse – committing to halving VAWG and reducing the number of women in prison. An estimated 60% of the nearly 4000 women currently residing in prison have experienced DA. Initial evidence suggests that a significant proportion have been coerced into offending by their abuser, whose violence or threats of violence will have trapped these women in a vicious cycle of victim-criminal. Thousands of women – and many of the estimated 17,240 children being separated from their mothers because of imprisonment each year are potentially suffering unjustly and unnecessarily.
Fast response and timely support
Government has introduced DA specialists in 999 control rooms to advise on risk assessments and work with police on the ground, securing a fast response and timely support; and new DA protection orders (currently being piloted) which include new measures such as imposing electronic tagging, participation in behaviour change programmes etc.
These initiatives however will fail victims unless police, judges magistrates and other professionals who routinely deal with DA cases feel confident in their ability to identify, respond, and support the men women and children involved.
Victim-focused Training
For this, our victim-focused training and the clear prioritisation of DA by their leadership teams are necessary. We secure both by building on our strong existing relationships with senior judges and Police and Crime Commissioners. We rely also on our network of survivors, experts, voluntary organisations and policy-makers to ensure implementation of our strategy.
