In Suffolk, domestic violence accounts for more
than a third of all violent crime and affects people
across all social, economic and geographic backgrounds, age groups
or ethnicity. It is a complex crime but if tackled effectively it
can support positive and healthier outcomes for individual
families, safer and stronger communities. However if left
unchallenged it can increase in frequency and severity and may lead
to domestic murder. There are also strong links to child abuse,
sexual assault, missing persons and suicide.
Domestic violence and abuse is present in the lives of many
adults and older people who may be particularly vulnerable because
of their age, frailty, physical or learning disability, mental
health problems, drug or alcohol related problems. Those in Black
and Ethnic Minority groups or Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Transgender
individuals may face additional perceived or actual difficulties in
seeking help.
It is important that children within the family are also regarded
not just as witnesses but as victims. There have been many
incidents where children have been directly injured or killed along
with their nurturing parent, this is in addition to the daily harm
they will suffer. Section 120 of the Adoption and Children Act 2002
has from January 31
st 2005 extended the legal definition
of harming children to include the ‘harm they suffer by seeing or
hearing the ill treatment of another – particularly in the home’.
Children were actually present in the home in over 47% of incidents
reported to the Police in Suffolk, and we know there is no lower
age limit at which children are immune to the adverse
affects.