Violence against Women and Girls report - 23rd July 2024

Today saw the publication of a report on Violence Against Women and Girls by Deputy Chief Constable Maggie Blyth. DCC Blyth, Deputy CEO of the College of Policing and NPCC lead for violence against women and girls, referred to VAWG as an ‘epidemic’

Over one million VAWG related crimes were recorded during 2022/23, accounting for 20% of all police recorded crime. 

• Police recorded VAWG related crime increased by 37% between 2018/23. 

• At least 1 in every 12 women will be a victim per year, with the exact number expected to be much higher. 

• Child sexual abuse and exploitation increased by more than 400% between 2013 and 2022. 

Not only is VAWG growing, but we are also seeing ever more complicated types of offending which causes significant harm to victims and society as a whole. One in every six murders related to domestic abuse in 22/23, with suspected victim suicides following domestic abuse rising year-on-year.

You can read the full report here:  

Women’s Aid have responded that ‘although the statistics are alarming, it is important to remember that many survivors will not report their experiences to the police, therefore we know the issue will be much larger than the data shows.’

National News May 2024

Child to Parent Abuse survey Respect have launched a landmark survey aiming to create a national picture of the public’s understanding and experiences of child and adolescent to parent violence and abuse, known as CAPVA: This type of abuse is known as a hidden harm: 40% of those experiencing CAPVA refuse to report it. The anonymous survey will explore adults’ and young people’s understanding of CAPVA, and – in cases where people have needed support related to the issue - we are asking them whether they sought support, if they didn’t seek support, what the reasons were, if they did access support, how they would rate the effectiveness of that support, how their experiences or identity impacted their help seeking, and whether they have any suggestions to improve things for people in their position. The survey is now open for anyone aged 13+ based in the UK, and will close on 29 August at 5pm.

Respect launches landmark CAPVA survey | Respect

The creation of sexually explicit "deepfake" images is to be made a criminal offence in England and Wales under a new law, the government say: Under the legislation, anyone making explicit images of an adult without their consent will face a criminal record and unlimited fine. It will apply regardless of whether the creator of an image intended to share it, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said. And if the image is then shared more widely, they could face jail. It will be introduced as an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill, which is currently making its way through Parliament.

Head to our blog page to read our latest blog “Sharing is not aways caring”

Britain’s biggest building society has said it will offer safe spaces to people experiencing domestic abuse at more than 400 branches across the UK: Nationwide last year promised that everywhere it has a branch, it will still be there until at least 2026 – ensuring face-to-face services are protected. Upon asking a member of staff to use their Safe Space, individuals will be able to use a private room to help them deal with the issue – access to a phone if they need one, and the chance to discreetly contact family, friends or specialist support. This initiative, launched by the charity Hestia as part of the UK Says No More campaign. The bank joined Hestia’s safe spaces scheme in April 2022, and said that since then more than 200 people have used a HSBC UK safe space. HSBC UK has said it experiences an average of two customer calls per day mentioning domestic or financial abuse.

Fatal domestic abuse reviews renamed to better recognise suicide cases: The government is taking action to better recognise the often hidden victims of domestic abuse who die after suicide, coercive and controlling behaviour, and economic abuse. Fatal domestic abuse reviews renamed to better recognise suicide cases - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

March 2024

We are delighted to have received a prestigious High Sheriff Award!! The recognition for our efforts in supporting those dealing with domestic abuse is really growing and we're extremely proud to continue this work. 

Thank you Liz Green, High Sheriff, and Herts Community Foundation for such an amazing evening at Micklefield Hall, Sarratt, and huge congratulations to all the other winners. We are also receiving a grant of £2,000 which will be a nice start to 2024-5!

Secondly, we are pleased to tell you that Sally Burton DL has agreed to become one of our Patrons.  Sally became a Deputy Lieutenant in 2012 and was High Sheriff of Hertfordshire in 2022-23. During that time her focus was on helping the vulnerable following the pandemic, with particular emphasis on the impact of addiction to drugs and alcohol, so she is well aware of the overlap with domestic abuse.  Sally has been very interested in our work for a couple of years – so it seemed an obvious next step to ask her to join us.

Picured below L-R are Sally Burton, Chris Roach - Helpline Chair, Hayley Star - Helpline Manager and Mel North - Helpline Administrator. 

International Women’s Day

We wanted to say a huge thank you to The Hub on Verulam who hosted a women’s wellness event for International Women’s Day. The evening was full of insight and connection and almost £500 was raised!

20th Anniversary Tea and Queens Award for Voluntary Service Presentation

The Herts Domestic Abuse Helpline has had a double celebration this year! In June the charity received the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. This highly regarded award is the equivalent of an MBE for the voluntary sector.  Everybody at the charity was delighted that the contribution by its volunteers - both call takers and Trustees - was recognised. 

The award was received as HDAH also celebrates its 20th year of operations.  To mark both of these achievements, HDAH held an afternoon tea on Friday 25th November for past and present volunteers, supporters and staff.  Robert Voss, the Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire presented the Award.

The afternoon tea was planned to coincide with the first day of the national 16 days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.  Domestic Abuse impacts over 21,000 people a year in Hertfordshire.  One in four women and one in six men in this country will be impacted in their lifetime.  As are 750,000 children.  Domestic abuse costs the economy over £60 billion a year.  

During its 20 years of operation, HDAH has tirelessly innovated and looked for new ways to assist those in need.  Over 2,000 people are signposted to help each year. If you would like to talk to someone about domestic abuse, either for yourself or someone else, please call 08 088 088 088 or email kim@mailpurple.org.

HDAH relies on donations and fundraising from the public to be able to continue its free service. It has recently launched its 20th anniversary “Tea and Cake for HDAH” fundraising campaign.  Please get involved by visiting the ‘Help Us’ page for more details.  You could make a difference!

Fancy fundraising for us? Check out the Help Us page for more info on how you can get involved.