‘Dangerous and disturbing’

Domestic abuse victims are being failed by the system, as new figures show the number of charges has dropped significantly even as the number of cases reported has risen – with critics saying that austerity is to blame.

Figures obtained by the Independent from 18 out of 43 police forces in Wales and England found that out of the police forces which supplied information, the number of domestic abuse reports has skyrocketed between 2015 and 2016 by more than 13,500, from 431,000 to 444,600.

But at the same time, the number of charges brought forward by police has fallen from 60,700 to 54,800 – a drop of 10 per cent. In certain regions in England, the fall in the number of cases making it to the prosecution stage has been even more dramatic, with Manchester reporting a drop of 25 per cent, Derbyshire a drop of 30 per cent and Durham a decrease of 17 per cent.

The latest figures will add pressure to prime minister Theresa May, who announced in February that she would make it a key priority to tackle domestic violence. May has long highlighted in her role in charge of the Home Office her record on domestic abuse.

But since 2009, at the peak of the financial crisis and just as austerity began, violence against women perpetrated by people they know has surged. In fact, in England and Wales alone, every week, two women are murdered by a current or former partner. Between August 2013 and June 2016 police recorded a 61 per cent increase in domestic abuse crimes.

Women’s Aid, a charity seeking to end domestic violence against women and children, has pointed out that domestic abuse is a complex problem and for women to secure justice against their abusers, policing is only one part of the picture. In order for women to come forward, they have to feel supported. Cuts to support services, the charity says, are exacerbating the problem.

“We are seeing specialist support services decimated by poor commissioning practices and funding cuts up and down the country,” chief executive of Women’s Aid Polly Neate told the Independent. “These services are essential both for survivors to recover and for the police to do their job better.

“The criminal justice system is only one element of the response to domestic abuse and without support for survivors to recover, not only will women and children continue to suffer and be in danger, but also we will never see more perpetrators brought to justice.”

“There needs to be improved understanding around the barriers facing victims,” she added. “It can be very dangerous for a victim of domestic abuse to press charges, if she isn’t safe and supported.

Refuges cut

Women’s Aid has highlighted that 17 per cent of women’s refuges have been cut since 2010 – and they face an even more uncertain future under the government’s new funding model for supported housing.  The charity fears that if women’s refuges continue to be lumped in with other forms of short-term supported housing, they won’t be protected from being shut.

Cuts to police services too have had serious consequences for domestic abuse victims – a damning report released last month found that policing in England and Wales has been put in a “potentially perilous state” because of government austerity.

The findings by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary discovered that some police forces were employing a range of “dangerous” and “disturbing” practices to cope with demand after their budgets have been cut by 20 per cent.

The watchdog found that in some forces, police were reclassifying high-risk domestic abuse cases as lower risk, while two forces were found in many instances to be conducting domestic abuse risk assessments only over the phone when the call taker judged the victim did not face immediate risk.

Shadow secretary of state for women and equalities Sarah Champion slammed the government for failing to properly fund policing.

“The government has questions to answer on whether cuts to frontline policing are preventing the police gathering necessary evidence and charging perpetrators of abuse,” she said.

Unite national officer for equalities Siobhan Endean agreed and argued that austerity as a whole was to blame.

“The failure of the system to protect victims of domestic abuse can be seen as a direct result of austerity,” she said.

“Cuts to local authorities have meant far too many women’s refuges have been forced to shut down. This has left abused women, many of them accompanying children, with nowhere to go, which often means they have no choice but to go straight back to the person abusing them.

“Austerity cuts to police services mean that police simply do not have resources to tackle a growing wave of domestic abuse,” Endean added.  “And cuts to legal aid also mean that victims are barred from access to justice. If the prime minister really wants to make good on her pledge to tackle domestic violence, then she can start by reversing the austerity that’s blighting so many lives.”

Endean highlighted too the role that Unite reps are playing in ensuring that those who are victims of domestic violence are safe when they go to work.

Unite has a guide for reps to help negotiate with employers measures they can implement in the workplace to support women in the grip of domestic violence, including a granting time off to those experiencing domestic violence, for example, to enable them to sort out the practical and legal problems; extending leave if they need to go to a refuge or move away; or redeploying them to a different workplace or non-frontline job if the member wishes, among other measures.

Find out more about Unite’s work in combatting domestic violence and abuse here.