Hitting out at abuse in the home

Mar 10 2009 by Katie Campling, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

THE Government announced its new plans for tackling domestic violence yesterday.

Some of the proposals include giving extra powers to police to tackle the issue. Abusive partners could be placed on a register, monitored by police, who could then warn future partners of their history.

The idea of police being able to ban abusers from the family home for up to a fortnight has also been put forward.

The ideas are set out in a consultation document – Together We Can End Violence Against Women And Girls Strategy – which has been published by the Home Office.

It will also include ideas for tackling issues such as partner abuse, honour killings, female genital mutilation, and the sexualisation of young girls.

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said: “We’ve already made real progress with domestic violence incidents more than halving in the past 12 years. But I want to start a national debate on what more we can do to prevent it and challenging attitudes which condone it.”

Public consultation will be held on the document across the country over the coming months. Domestic violence groups have welcomed the fact that the issue has been highlighted.

In the UK, two women are murdered every week and 30 men die every year as a result of domestic violence. National research suggests it has more repeat victims than any other crime and it costs £23bn a year to deal with. On average, a victim suffers 35 assaults before calling the police.

However, some domestic violence groups, like Refuge, have questioned whether simply giving more powers to police will work.

Having a database of abusers relies on them being reported by their victims – something which often does not happen.

So, what do the experts in Kirklees think? Thelma Singleton, domestic violence co-ordinator for Kirklees Safer Stronger Communities Partnership, said: “We do know generally that it is under reported and the cases different agencies hear about are often the tip of the iceberg.”

In Kirklees, between April 2007 and March 2008, 5,796 domestic violence incidents were recorded by the police. Of these, 26.5% were violent crimes, 41% were verbal disputes, 22% involved breach of the peace and 5% involved criminal damage.ŠDomestic violence comprised 20% of all recorded violent crime in the district.