A report provided findings from a survey of students regarding sexualized behaviour, conversations, comments, or images on university campuses. It had found that one-third of women students had experienced unwelcome sexual advances, almost one third of students had overtly sexual conversations directed at them which made them uncomfortable, and two thirds of respondents had witnessed other students experiencing unwanted sexual comments. The survey formed part of ongoing work by the union.
Source: Jo Stanton, Lad Culture & Sexism Survey: August-September 2014, National Union of Students
Links: Report | NUS press release | BBC report
Date: 2014-Sep
An article examined recent data on murders by intimate partners in ten European countries, including the United Kingdom, to map policy developments and the role of key policy-making actors. It said that, although there were differences between the countries, common trends were evident in policy developments, noting the importance of women's activism and public action.
Source: Consuelo Corradi and Heidi Stockl, 'Intimate partner homicide in 10 European countries: statistical data and policy development in a cross-national perspective', European Journal of Criminology, Volume 11 Number 5
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Sep
A report provided findings from a project that examined hate crime, looking at: people's experiences of hate, prejudice, and targeted hostility; the physical and emotional harms suffered by victims and their families; and ways in which to improve the quality of support offered to victims. A series of briefings were published alongside the main findings, together with a 'manifesto', which set out victim-centred recommendations based on the needs and expectations of those whose lives had been directly affected by hate crime.
Source: The Leicester Hate Crime Project, Findings and Conclusions, University of Leicester
Links: Report | Summary | Victims manifesto | Project
Source: The Leicester Hate Crime Project, Briefing Paper 1: Disablist hate crime, University of Leicester
Links: Paper
Source: The Leicester Hate Crime Project, Briefing Paper 2: Gendered hostility, University of Leicester
Links: Paper
Source: The Leicester Hate Crime Project, Briefing Paper 3: Homophobic hate crime, University of Leicester
Links: Paper
Source: The Leicester Hate Crime Project, Briefing Paper 4: Racist hate crime, University of Leicester
Links: Paper
Source: The Leicester Hate Crime Project, Briefing Paper 5: Religiously motivated hate crime, University of Leicester
Links: Paper
Date: 2014-Sep
A think-tank report said that many social housing estates in Britain had experienced decades of neglect and had entrenched and generational social problems (including 'endemic' domestic violence). Drawing on case studies of good practice, the report said that such estates would benefit from locally-based intervention involving local people, based on good local intelligence, and supported by inter-agency collaborative working. It said that existing resources should be better deployed, that encouraging the reporting of crime was crucial, and that women needed to be supported through the provision of, and support for, male perpetrator programmes, sex and relationships education, and interventions to empower women in deprived areas through education, employment, and parenting support. The report made a range of recommendations, including: for an 'Estates Recovery Board', to complement the Troubled Families team, pooling funding from relevant government departments; and for the police and crime commissioners to establish multi-agency 'Estate Recovery Teams' to devise estate recovery plans.
Source: Gavin Knight, The Estate We're In: Lessons from the front line, Policy Exchange
Links: Report | Policy Exchange press release | NHS Alliance press release | Inside Housing report
Date: 2014-Aug
The government began consultation on whether the existing law on domestic abuse in England and Wales needed to be strengthened to offer better protection to victims and, specifically, whether a specific offence should be created to capture patterns of coercive and controlling behaviour in intimate relationships. The consultation asked four questions: whether the existing law adequately provided sufficient protection to victims of domestic abuse; in which ways the law could be strengthened; how to implement suggested changes in practice; and whether the existing law sufficiently captured the government's non-statutory definition of domestic abuse. The consultation would close on 15 October 2014.
Source: Strengthening the Law on Domestic Abuse A Consultation, Home Office
Links: Consultation document | HO press release | AVA press release | Citizens Advice press release | BBC report | Guardian report | Telegraph report
Date: 2014-Aug
A report examined the risk factors associated with negative outcomes for girls and women, including those in contact with the criminal justice system, experiencing homelessness, involved in prostitution or sexual exploitation, experiencing severe mental health problems, or with serious drugs and/or alcohol problems. The report considered the relationship between such outcomes and the prevalence or accumulation of negative and abusive experiences across the life course, and examined differential impacts by gender.
Source: Di McNeish and Sara Scott, Women and Girls at Risk: Evidence across the life course, DMSS Research
Links: Report | Summary | DMSS press release
Date: 2014-Aug
A report examined how women and children who experienced domestic violence rebuilt their lives after physically removing themselves from the control and coercion exerted by the perpetrator. It examined post-separation abuse, experience of services and the legal system, changes in housing situation, and how informal networks facilitated or inhibited their safety and freedom. The report said that over 90 per cent of women experienced post-separation abuse, and that the limited effectiveness of criminal and civil law enforcement required them proactively to manage their own safety. It made a range of recommendations, including: for access to a range of support for a minimum of two years after separation, recognizing that the process of rebuilding lives took time; for better understanding by staff within statutory agencies, particularly regarding issues related to coercive control; for nationally funded refuge provision, with move-on pathways and better provisions for access to social housing tenancies; for universal credit to be paid to women where children were involved, for central government to provide hardship funding for families fleeing domestic violence, and for a period of grace regarding the reduction of housing benefit when the perpetrator left the family home; and for more awareness raising among the general public, to facilitate better community support as women and children made their transitions.
Source: Liz Kelly, Nicola Sharp, and Renate Klein, Finding the Costs of Freedom: How women and children rebuild their lives after domestic violence, Solace Women's Aid/ Child and Woman Abuse Studies Unit
Links: Report | Summary | Solace press release
Date: 2014-Aug
An article examined adolescent to parent violence cases reported to the police. It examined victim, offender and incident characteristics from 1892 cases, most of which involved violence against the person or criminal damage in the home. The study found that the majority of offenders were male, and over 75 per cent of victims were female.
Source: Rachel Condry and Caroline Miles, 'Adolescent to parent violence: framing and mapping a hidden problem', Criminology and Criminal Justice, Volume 14 Number 3
Date: 2014-Jul
A report by a committee of MPs said that conservative estimates of the numbers of girls at risk of female genital mutilation (FGM) indicated that it could be one of the most prevalent forms of severe physical child abuse in the United Kingdom. It said that, in two London boroughs, an estimated one in ten girls were born to a woman who had undergone FGM (and were therefore deemed to be at risk themselves). The report called on the government: to develop a comprehensive and resourced national plan; for more proactive prosecution of cases, the extension of anonymity rights for victims, and changes to the law to introduce protection orders; for more systematic approaches to child protection for girls born to mothers who had undergone FGM; for better training of relevant professionals and greater police engagement; and for community work to campaign and inform against FGM.
Source: Female Genital Mutilation: The case for a national action plan, Second Report (Session 2014–15), HC 201, House of Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, TSO
Links: Report | Committee press release | Unite press release
Date: 2014-Jul
An article examined how the Big Society agenda, alongside public spending cuts, was affecting the independence and ability of women's organizations to engage in progressive policy shaping, taking the domestic violence sector as a case study. It drew parallels between the processes within England and outcomes elsewhere in the world where civil society had been brought into service delivery, with the result that organizations' independence and ability to engage in progressive policy making had been weakened.
Source: Armine Ishkanian, 'Neoliberalism and violence: the Big Society and the changing politics of domestic violence in England', Critical Social Policy, Volume 34 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jul
The government began consultation on proposals to introduce a specific civil law measure, similar to the Forced Marriage Protection Orders model, to help prevent female genital mutilation and to help protect women and girls at risk. The consultation would close on 19 August 2014.
Source: Ministry of Justice
Links: Consultation website
Date: 2014-Jul
An article examined findings from the REaDAPt (Relationship Education and Domestic Abuse Prevention Tuition) project, which sought to enhance the provision of relationship education and domestic abuse prevention in European schools and other educational facilities. The article discussed what the project revealed about changing attitudes, about implementing and evaluating such programmes, and about being responsive to young people's perspectives in the delivery of interventions, as well as the research needed to develop such programmes further.
Source: David Gadd, Claire Fox, and Rebecca Hale, 'Preliminary steps towards a more preventative approach to eliminating violence against women in Europe', European Journal of Criminology, Volume 11 Number 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jul
The Welsh Government published a Bill designed to place duties on Welsh ministers, local authorities, and local health boards to publish strategies aimed at ending domestic abuse, gender-based violence, and sexual violence; give power to the Welsh ministers to issue guidance to relevant authorities on how they should exercise their functions in this regard; and to provide for the appointment of a ministerial adviser.
Source: Gender-based Violence, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Bill, Welsh Government, TSO
Links: Bill | Explanatory notes | Welsh Government press release
Date: 2014-Jul
An article examined adolescent to parent violence cases reported to the police. It examined victim, offender and incident characteristics from 1892 cases, most of which involved violence against the person or criminal damage in the home. The study found that the majority of offenders were male, and over 75 per cent of victims were female.
Source: Rachel Condry and Caroline Miles, 'Adolescent to parent violence: framing and mapping a hidden problem', Criminology and Criminal Justice, Volume 14 Number 3
Date: 2014-Jun
The Scottish Government published its strategy for preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls. It said that its overall aim was to prevent and eradicate such violence, and set out four key priorities: for Scottish society to embrace equality and mutual respect, and to reject all forms of violence against women and girls; for women and girls to thrive as equal citizens (socially, culturally, economically, and politically); for interventions to be early and effective, preventing violence and maximizing safety and well-being; and for men to desist from all forms of violence against women and girls and for perpetrators of such violence to receive a robust and effective response.
Source: Equally Safe: Scotland's strategy for preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls, Scottish Government
Links: Strategy | Summary | Scottish Government press release
Date: 2014-Jun
An article examined the work of the MAZE project, a specialist domestic abuse service that worked intensively with women affected by domestic abuse and their partners. It presented examples of the work conducted, and noted the central importance of remaining focused upon the safety of women and children, and upon understanding, assessing, and addressing the risks and responsibilities of the domestic violence behaviours, which turned the attention of professionals towards men.
Source: Sue Peckover and Angela Everson, 'Putting men's abuse of women on the childcare agenda: an innovative specialist domestic abuse project', Practice: Social Work in Action, Volume 26 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jun
An article examined the evidence for a 'widely repeated' claim that victims of domestic abuse suffered an average of 35 incidents prior to someone reporting the issue to the police. It said that the only evidence found for making this claim in England and Wales came from a 1979 study of police responses in a small Canadian city. However, the article said that the numbers of cases in the study meant that it was inadequate to support an international generalization to the United Kingdom.
Source: Heather Strang, Peter Neyroud, and Lawrence Sherman, 'Tracking the evidence for a "mythical number": do UK domestic abuse victims suffer an average of 35 assaults before someone calls the police?', Policing, Volume 8 Issue 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jun
An article examined the REaDAPt (Relationship Education and Domestic Abuse Prevention tuition) project: a relationship education and domestic abuse prevention programme in European schools and other educational facilities. It outlined findings on: changing attitudes; implementing and evaluating domestic abuse prevention programmes in educational settings; and responses to young people's perspectives in the delivery of interventions. The article highlighted ongoing research needs.
Source: David Gadd, Claire Fox, and Rebecca Hale, 'Preliminary steps towards a more preventative approach to eliminating violence against women in Europe', European Journal of Criminology, Volume 11 Number 4
Date: 2014-Jun
A new book examined current thinking, practice, and research into the use of restorative justice in the area of family violence, including sexual violence and elder abuse. The book presented empirical studies from New Zealand, and perspectives on practices in the United Kingdom, Australia, and North America.
Source: Anne Hayden, Venezia Kingi, and Allison Morris, A Restorative Approach to Family Violence: Changing tack, Ashgate Publications
Links: Summary
Date: 2014-Jun
A report provided findings from a literature review of evidence on reducing reoffending in crimes of violence against women. It said that there was a range of good practice in criminal justice responses, but limited evidence about effective interventions to reduce reoffending by perpetrators.
Source: Oona Brooks, Michele Burman, Nancy Lombard, Gill McIvor, Leah Stevenson-Hastings, and Deborah Kyle, with Alix Thomazi, Violence Against Women: Effective interventions and practices with perpetrators – a literature review, Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research
Links: Report | SCCJR press release
Date: 2014-Jun
An article examined the role of the community in relation to intimate partner abuse. It said that more research was needed to examine how communities of all kinds challenged or supported such abuse, without treating them as either entirely benign or entirely dangerous.
Source: Jackie Haq and Ruth Lewis, 'The violence of community? Conceptualizations of "community" in responses to intimate partner abuse', Community Development Journal, Volume 49 Number 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jun
A study examined violence against women, domestic abuse, and sexual violence in Wales, to inform the forthcoming Ending Violence Against Women and Domestic Abuse (Wales) Bill, implementation of the legislation, and future policy and funding decisions. The report said that there was a lack of robust data, but estimates showed that these were significant problems in Wales. It mapped service provision across the country and made a wide range of recommendations.
Source: Vashti Berry, Nicky Stanley, Lorraine Radford, Melanie McCarry, and Cath Larkins, Building Effective Responses: An independent review of violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence services in Wales, Research Paper 45/2014, Welsh Government
Date: 2014-May
The prosecution service for England and Wales began consultation on proposals to consolidate and revise guidance on the prosecution of domestic violence cases. The consultation would close on 9 July 2014.
Source: The Prosecution of Domestic Violence Cases, Crown Prosecution Service
Links: Consultation document | CPS press release
Date: 2014-May
An article examined whether screening for intimate partner violence conducted within healthcare settings increased identification and referral to support agencies, improved women's well-being, decreased further violence, or caused harm, reporting the findings from a Cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis. It found that screening did not appear to cause harm (in one study), but it was uncertain whether screening increased effective referral to supportive agencies, or reduced violence. It concluded that there was insufficient evidence to support screening in healthcare settings.
Source: Lorna O'Doherty, Angela Taft, Kelsey Hegarty, Jean Ramsay, Leslie Davidson, and Gene Feder, 'Screening women for intimate partner violence in healthcare settings: abridged Cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis', BMJ, Volume 348
Links: Article | University of Bristol press release
Date: 2014-May
A report (by an official advisory body) examined whether the two offences under which hate crime was prosecuted could be extended to bring equality of treatment across the five characteristics of disability, gender identity, race, religion, and sexual orientation. The report said that a consultation had revealed strong support for extending the aggravated offences, but also serious concerns from many stakeholders that the existing offences were unnecessarily complex and not working well. The Commission therefore recommended that a review of options should be conducted, but said that, in the absence of support or resources for a review, a less satisfactory solution would be for aggravated offences to be extended to disability, sexual orientation, and transgender identity. With regards to sentencing, the Commission said that the current, enhanced sentencing powers were under-used, partly because the the hostility element of hate crime was not always fully investigated, and the court was not always given the associated evidence. The report made recommendations for clearer sentencing guidance, and for the police national computer records to show where offences were proven to be aggravated by hostility.
Source: Hate Crime: Should the current offences be extended?, LC348, Law Commission
Links: Report | Summary | Consultation responses | Law Commission press release
Date: 2014-May
A new book examined domestic violence and abuse in same sex relationships, and considered how experiences might be shaped by gender, sexuality, and age.
Source: Catherine Donovan and Marianne Hester, Domestic Violence and Sexuality: What's love got to do with it?, Policy Press
Links: Summary | University of Bristol press release
Date: 2014-Apr
An article examined the prevalence of domestic violence among women requesting termination of a pregnancy in North East England. Comparing the questionnaire responses of women requesting terminations with those of women attending antenatal care, the paper said that women requesting a termination were six times as likely to suffer physical abuse in their existing relationships, and five times as likely to suffer emotional abuse. The article said that, of 274 women requesting terminations, ten mentioned domestic violence as a contributing factor.
Source: Tonye Wokoma, M Jampala, Helen Bexhell, Kate Guthrie, and Stephen Lindow 'A comparative study of the prevalence of domestic violence in women requesting a termination of pregnancy and those attending the antenatal clinic', BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Volume 121 Issue 5
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Apr
An article presented an overview of male family 'annihilators' – men who committed multiple simultaneous murders against their own family members. Out of 71 family annihilators identified in the period 1980-2012, 59 had been male. The incidence rate had been increasing, with the first decade of the 21st century claiming over half of all cases. Over half of the men were in their thirties, and August was the most common month for the killing to take place, accounting for 20 per cent of cases. Just under half of all murders were committed over weekends, especially on a Sunday.
Source: Elizabeth Yardley, David Wilson, and Adam Lynes, 'A taxonomy of male British family annihilators, 1980-2012', Howard Journal of Criminal Justice, Volume 53 Issue 2
Links: Abstract | BCU press release
Date: 2014-Apr
An article examined the use and efficacy of social marketing in reducing the incidence of domestic abuse, drawing on the responses of domestic abuse perpetrators exposed to the United Kingdom government's This Was Abuse campaign film.
Source: David Gadd, Mary-Louise Corr, Claire Fox, and Ian Butler, 'This is abuse... or is it? Domestic abuse perpetrators' responses to anti-domestic violence publicity', Crime Media Culture, Volume 10 Issue 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Apr
An article examined intervention programmes for female victims and survivors of domestic abuse in the UK. It said that clients who had experienced abuse were increasingly referred to these interventions by professionals. The article discussed key aspects of the programmes and criticisms of this type of intervention.
Source: Emma Williamson and Hilary Abrahams, 'A review of the provision of intervention programs for female victims and survivors of domestic abuse in the United Kingdom', Affilia, Volume 29 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Apr
A report provided results from a study of violence against women, based on interviews with 42,000 women across the member states of the European Union. Women were asked about their experiences of physical, sexual, and psychological violence, including domestic (or 'intimate partner') violence, stalking, and sexual harassment, as well as the role of new technologies in their abuse. The survey also asked about their experiences of violence in childhood. The report said that 33 per cent of women had experienced physical and/or sexual violence since the age of 15, and that one in 20 women had been the victim of rape. There were differences between member states in the reported levels of harm. The report called for a victim-centred and rights-centred approach to be reinforced at the EU and member state level, and made recommendations for action including legislation, training, resourcing, specialist support, and better, harmonised data.
Source: Violence Against Women: An EU-wide survey – main results, European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA)
Links: Report | Factsheet | Summary | Technical report | FRA press release | Citizens Advice press release | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2014-Mar
A report examined the experience and impact of intimate partner (or domestic) violence in the United Kingdom. It said that 88 per cent of respondents to a survey thought the criminal justice system did not take psychological harm into account, yet 94 per cent said that mental cruelty could sometimes be worse than physical violence. 57 per cent of women who reported to police reported more than three instances of domestic violence, but 81 per cent said the criminal justice system did not take any pattern of abuse into account. The report called for legislative reform to capture the nature and harm of domestic violence and to recognize its gendered nature.
Source: Domestic Violence Law Reform – The Victim's Voice Survey: Victim's experience of domestic violence and the criminal justice system, Women's Aid/Sara Charlton Charitable Foundation/Paladin
Links: Report | Womens Aid press release
Date: 2014-Mar
A report by an all party parliamentary group said that many women experiencing domestic violence did not have access to justice and that the criminal justice system frequently failed to hold perpetrators of domestic violence to account. 89 per cent of respondents to the APPG inquiry had thought there were barriers to women disclosing domestic violence to the police and/or other criminal justice agencies. The report made recommendations, including: for better collection of data relating to domestic violence; for domestic violence awareness training for all front line police officers and justice officials; and for government to review, and close gaps in, the existing legislation around domestic violence.
Source: Sian Hawkins and Clare Laxton, Women's Access to Justice: From reporting to sentencing, All Party Parliamentary Group on Domestic and Sexual Violence
Links: Report | Womens Aid press release
Date: 2014-Mar
An article examined findings from an evaluation of a specialized youth service for young people who had experienced or been affected by domestic abuse in one town in Scotland. The findings suggested that one-to-one support and group work sessions facilitated a better understanding of domestic abuse and helped young people in working through their feelings and making new friends. The analysis also suggested that young people valued the specialist services provided, perceiving them as different from other youth work services. The arguments in favour of specialist services were said to be compelling, yet caution was called for in order to avoid creating dependency. There were also calls for improved communication and understanding among participating partner agencies.
Source: Annette Coburn and Sinead Gormally, '"They know what you are going through": a service response to young people who have experienced the impact of domestic abuse', Journal of Youth Studies, Volume 17 Number 5
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Mar
The police service inspectorate said that the police response to victims of domestic abuse had improved over the previous ten years, but there were still weaknesses in the service provided to victims by some forces, of which some could be regarded as serious and leaving victims at unnecessary risk. It said that domestic abuse was often a priority on paper, but this was not translating into operational practice in most forces, and there was an urgent need to improve the police response. The report outlined a range of contributing factors, and made recommendations.
Source: Everyone's Business: Improving the police response to domestic abuse, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary
Links: Report | Individual force reports | HMIC press release | Home Office press release | Written ministerial statement | 4Children press release | ACPO press release | Police Federation press release | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2014-Mar
A report provided a summary of discussions from a conference on the the impact of online stalking and harassment on women. It said that the impact was underestimated by all statutory services and that the responses from the police, criminal justice system, and social media providers were considered to be inadequate. The report called for online abuse, harassment, and stalking to be considered and dealt with as part of the spectrum of domestic violence offences. It recommended for the government action plan on violence against women and girls to be updated, for social media providers to take action, and for guidance and training for people working in the criminal justice system.
Source: Clare Laxton, Virtual World, Real Fear: Women's Aid report into online abuse, harassment and stalking, Women's Aid Federation of England
Date: 2014-Feb