Domestic violence


Domestic violence is chronically under reported, however research estimates it accounts for 16% of all violent crime and will affect 1 in 4 women in their lifetime.

  • It has more repeat victims than any other crime (on average there will have been 35 assaults before a victim calls the police)
  • On average, two women in England and Wales are killed every week by a current or former male partner
  • One incident of domestic violence is reported to the police every minute (Source: Crime in England and Wales 2006/07 report)
  • There were 48,801 incidents of domestic abuse recorded in 2006-07 in Scotland, and 87% of these cases counted of a female victim and male perpetrator.
  • The overwelming majority of domestic abuses case (90%) took place in the home of the victim by a partner or ex-partner.
  • Just under a half of these incidents (49%) were recorded as criminal offence and only the 11% of these were recorded as serious crimes. (Source: Statistical Bullettin – Criminal Justice Series - domestic abuse recorded by the police in Scotland, 2006-07)
  • At least 750,000 children witness domestic violence every year (Department of Health, Women’s Mental Health: Into The Mainstream, 2003)
  • One in five women in Northern Ireland has experienced domestic violence

Women with uncertain immigration status have no recourse to public funds so are not eligible for the protection provided by refuges and may be forced to stay within an abusive relationship.

Resources

Domestic Violence, Forced Marriage and 'Honour'-Based Violence

House of Commons Home Affairs Committee, May 2008

 

“I can't tell people what is happening at home” Domestic abuse within South Asian communities: the specific needs of women, children and young people. June 2008. Click here for link to NSPCC report.


Resources for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) victims
http://www.gldvp.org.uk/C2B/document_tree/ViewACategory.asp?CategoryID=147


GLDVP – Mental Health and Domestic Violence Toolkit http://www.gldvp.org.uk/C2B/document_tree/ViewACategory.asp?CategoryID=168

 

New Police Guidance on Investigating Domestic Violence http://www.acpo.police.uk/asp/policies/Data/Domestic_Abuse_2008.pdf

 

Specialist DV Court Programme - new reports
This report summarises the findings from a review of the first 23 individual Specialist Domestic Violence selected by the National SDVC Programme in 2005/6, all of which had started by April 2006.

http://www.cps.gov.uk/publications/equality/sdvc_review.html

 

The National Resource Manual outlining the recommended core components of an SDVC has also been updated to reflect findings from the review.

http://www.crimereduction.homeoffice.gov.uk/domesticviolence/domesticviolence059a.pdf

 

Violent Crime Action Plan , Home Office, 2008

 

The Survivor's Handbook , Women's Aid

 

Unlocking the Secret , Women's National Commission 2003