We’ve written before at HuffPost UK about a UN report which found that the home is the most dangerous place for women.
That’s because they’re far more likely to be killed by a man they’re close to (be it as a family member or intimate spouse) than men are (60% vs 12%).
And that’s not accounting for huge data gaps due to various nations and institutions failing to record gender-based murders accurately, which the UN says prevents it from reporting on the true femicide statistics properly.
Now, some chilling facts about domestic abuse in the UK (which is linked to femicide) have been revealed.
In a site entry published yesterday, The Office for National Statistics (ONS) and The Crime Survey for England and Wales found that only around half of UK domestic abuses in the year ending March 2024 had been recorded by police, and fewer still ever end in a conviction.
What are the figures?
2.3 million people, over two-thirds of which were women and of which roughly 712,000 were men, experienced domestic abuse in the year ending March 2024, The Crime Survey for England and Wales found.
That’s around one in 20 people.
Of these, only 1.4 million cases were ever brought to police, ONS says.
Once the cases had been placed before police, only a fraction (39,000 cases) ever resulted in a prosecution.
In terms of percentage, that means just under 2.8% of cases brought before the police result in a conviction.
And when you compare the conviction rates to the overall domestic abuse figures, around half of which don’t ever go before police, it’s just under 1.7%.
Is anything being done?
The government will be trialling enhanced domestic abuse protection notices and orders (DAPNs and DAPOs, first introduced by the previous government in 2021) in Greater Manchester, three London boroughs, and the British Transport Police soon.
They will roll it out to Cleveland and North Wales in 2025 ahead of a national rollout.
The orders can be issued by police as soon as they hear of a domestic abuse case and will be effective immediately.
MP and Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls Jess Phillips, who was involved in this government’s plan to make spiking drinks a criminal offence, said that the more flexible approach will “ensure more victims receive the robust protection they deserve.”
“Unlike some existing protections, which can only be enforced for 28 days, the new Domestic Abuse Protection Orders will have no time restrictions, meaning victims are protected for as long as needed to stay safe,” the government says.
Friends and family will be able to apply on behalf of someone they’re worried about, and “Breaching the order will be a criminal offence punishable by up to five years in prison, making sure perpetrators who flout the rules are punished.”
By “strengthening” these protection orders, the government hopes to “halve violence against women and girls in a decade.”
Help and support:
If you, or someone you know, is in immediate danger, call 999 and ask for the police. If you are not in immediate danger, you can contact:
- The Freephone 24 hour National Domestic Violence Helpline, run by Refuge: 0808 2000 247
- In Scotland, contact Scotland’s 24 hour Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline: 0800 027 1234
- In Northern Ireland, contact the 24 hour Domestic & Sexual Violence Helpline: 0808 802 1414
- In Wales, contact the 24 hour Life Fear Free Helpline on 0808 80 10 800.
- National LGBT+ Domestic Abuse Helpline: 0800 999 5428
- Men’s Advice Line: 0808 801 0327
- Respect helpline (for anyone worried about their own behaviour): 0808 802 0321