- The Domestic Abuse Commissioner for England and Wales is calling on ministers to reassure victims and survivors that halving violence against women and girls (VAWG) remains a key priority
- Dame Nicole Jacobs is urging the government to publish the heavily delayed VAWG strategy and provide the necessary funding needed to ensure it succeeds
Today, the UK Government, has issued its formal response to the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s report into the experiences of children subject to domestic abuse, which included extensive recommendations on what action must be taken to improve the response they receive.
Of the 66 recommendations made by the Commissioner, the government has stated it intends to act, or points to work already in motion, on just 10 of the critical changes required to overhaul the current response for children subject to abuse. While some of the remaining 56 recommendations have been accepted partially, the majority have been flagged by the government as either needing to ‘explore’ or ‘consult’ on whether this work is required or been dismissed out right.
The Commissioner is pleased to see the government already act on two of her recommendations, since the report was published in April. This included updating the Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSE) guidance, so that all children can learn about abusive behaviour in schools and increased funding for behaviour change perpetrator programmes. She is, however, becoming increasingly concerned by the ‘lack of momentum’ to tackle domestic abuse and improve the lives of survivors, including children.
This, she says, is a consequence of heavy delays to the much-anticipated violence against women and girls strategy, which is where the government has said it will set out its plans to ‘improve support for victims of domestic abuse, including for babies, children and young people.’
With an ambitious target to halve VAWG within a decade, the Domestic Abuse Commissioner is calling on ministers to urgently reassure survivors that tackling domestic abuse remains a critical priority. This, Dame Nicole Jacobs says, must be done by urgently publishing the VAWG strategy and providing the funding needed to ensure the much-needed work to better protect and support both adult and child victims of abuse can begin and succeed.
Domestic Abuse Commissioner for England and Wales, Dame Nicole Jacobs, said: “Tens of thousands of child victims are currently not getting the level of help and support they need to recover from abuse, and I remain largely unclear on what the government intends to do about it.
“For children experiencing domestic abuse every day can be an anxious battle. Many are growing up in homes where the rules are always changing, where they struggle to concentrate at school and often do not know what devastating consequences the next day will bring. These children are our future – they need and deserve an ambitious plan from government on how it is going to ensure they are protected, but also how it intends to prevent other children from growing up in homes like theirs. But this has yet to materialise.
“Halving violence against women and girls within a decade is an ambitious target and one I applaud. But with the VAWG strategy still delayed and no major funding announced for specialist domestic abuse services, I fail to see where the momentum within government is coming from to ensure this commitment succeeds.
“It’s vital that the government clearly sets out how it intends to tackle and prevent domestic abuse as a matter of urgency. It should not need to be said that adult and child victims cannot wait any longer.”
ENDS
Notes to editor
The Commissioner’s report – Victims in their own right? – exposed how children across England and Wales are being turned away from vital help or left on long waiting lists, as specialist services struggle to cope amid funding shortages and rising demand. This report was supported by a separate piece of research – Tell Nicole – which enabled children to share their views on the support they need when experiencing domestic abuse.
To address this, the Domestic Abuse Commissioner made extensive recommendations to the government on how it could strengthen the support children receive. This included ensuring schools, the NHS and other public services such as the police and social care are better equipped to play their part in addressing domestic abuse through proper resourcing, guidance and training.
Underpinning this, was a critical need for independent and specialist domestic abuse services to receive adequate funding to stave off closure and continue to support children at a time when they need it most. No funding has been pledged to support these services in this response, or at either the Chancellor’s Spring statement in March or in the Budget last November.