Domestic violence services ‘at breaking point’
Is there enough support in rural areas for those suffering domestic violence – on the strength of this article I suspect the answer is both “no” and that things are getting worse.
It is shocking that in 2013 more than two women each week are killed by their current or ex-partners, and one in four women in the UK will experience domestic violence in their lifetime. This article presents the findings of a study by the charity ‘Women’s Aid’ which found on one day in 2013, 155 women and 103 children were turned away from refuges in England. While Ministers argue that £40 million has been ring fenced to fund ‘specialist support services and national help lines’, the charity suggests cuts to local authority budgets have depleted the help available at a time when demand is increasing. Women’s Aid chief executive Polly Neate describes how “Specialist gender-specific domestic violence services are reaching a breaking point. It is also worth noting that approximately 2 out of every 5 victims of domestic violence are men, challenging the mainstream impression that it is always women that are left battered and bruised – with some men assaulted by their partners reporting not being given enough support by the police.