Politicians who promise to reduce gender-based violence through tough-on-crime strategies are committing to strategies that haven’t been shown to actually prevent violence.
A change in how witnesses, victims and authorities respond to domestic violence reports paired with limited social services placed victims in a vulnerable position during the pandemic.
Children exposed to intimate partner violence were two to three times more likely to have impaired language skills, sleep problems, elevated blood pressure and asthma.
Calls for help to domestic violence shelters have risen during the pandemic, as risk factors for the escalation of violence have gone up. It may be time to implement new strategies to help.
It’s not just children designated as being ‘at risk’ who are vulnerable. There are thousands of others who have not been assessed and who need the ‘safe haven’ of school.
COVID-19 is not a cause of domestic abuse and focusing on this event obscures the underlying causes, offering perpetrators excuses for their abusive behaviour.
It is important that police forces and the CPS are able to recognise that coercive control and couple violence are different and require different handling.