New government figures suggest that fewer than half of domestic abuse cases in England and Wales end up as police-recorded crimes, and the majority of these do not lead to a prosecution. An estimated 2.3 million people were victims of domestic abuse in the year to March 2024, with just over two-thirds being women and 712,000 being men. Of the 1.4 million incidents of domestic abuse recorded by police, only 39,000 resulted in a criminal conviction.
As pilot schemes for tougher domestic violence orders are announced, charities warn that unless police and courts act on them, they are worth “little more than the paper they are written on.” The pilots for enhanced domestic abuse protection notices and orders were legislated for by the previous government in 2021 and will be trialled in Greater Manchester, three London boroughs, and British Transport Police.
The new orders can be imposed by any court and bring together powers in other protective orders to provide “flexible and long-term protection” for victims of domestic abuse. Breaching the order would be a criminal rather than a civil offence. Family courts will also be able to impose tagging for up to 12 months in the most serious cases, something that previously could only be done by criminal courts or the police.
While domestic abuse charities welcomed the orders, they said greater awareness and training within the police and courts would be necessary. Women’s Aid backed the criminalisation of the new orders but sought more training and joined-up courts to ensure that survivors have faith in them
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