Domestic abuse victims exempt from remaining at home
DOMESTIC abuse victims have been told by one of Britain’s most senior police officers that they can break the lockdown if necessary.
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Louisa Rolfe, the National Police Chief Council’s lead for domestic abuse, said: “While we want people to stay home and save lives, if it means you are living with abuse, you don’t have to. There is help available.
“My message is that this is a priority and if you call us, we will respond. No one is expecting you to be locked in an abusive relationship.”
It came after Refuge’s National Domestic Abuse Helpline revealed a 25 per cent rise in calls since the start of the lockdown.
It also emerged yesterday that since the measures were brought in there have been 10 cases of women killed by men, five within marriages.
This compared with an average of three over the same period in each of the years from 2012 to 2019, according to the femicide census compiled by the charity Nia.
Ms Rolfe, deputy chief constable of West Midlands Police who is soon to join Scotland Yard as an assistant commissioner, said she was concerned by a fall in calls from “high-risk” cases, where victims might be “finding it impossible to get out the call”. However, Refuge revealed contacts from victims through online platforms had more than doubled, possibly because using a laptop enabled victims to communicate more discreetly than by phone.
Ms Rolfe said police forces were issuing posters and leaflets in supermarkets, post offices and pharmacies to direct potential victims to domestic abuse charities, helplines and online platforms as well as police emergency lines, “live chat” and online services.
But she said victims could still use the phone: “If they call 999 and are unable to speak, they can make any kind of noise and then press 5; they will be put through to the police as an emergency 999. It’s logged and can be traced.”
Cash under the Government’s charities bail-out announced yesterday will go to both refuges and online services.
Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, said: “Yesterday’s announcement is an important step towards ensuring thiscountry’s remarkable domestic abuse charities can continue to provide vitalsupport to those who need it the most and I will continue working with them and the police to further ramp up our efforts to protect victims of abuse.”
The Crown Prosecution Service has assured the police they will be able to use domestic violence protection orders, even if courts were in lockdown, to ban an abuser from an address and guidance has been tightened to prevent abusers “manipulating” bail conditions by claiming they need to self-isolate at home.