« Back to "Policy blog"

We often wonder how those with a history of domestic abuse view the results of their behaviour – not least the damage they cause to both their partners and their children. This weekend, millions of people will watch the fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. Mayweather of course pled guilty to abusing his partner and mother of three of his children. As a result, he does not get to see his children as much as he might like. But what should we make of Mayweather’s version of the ‘truth’ when asked for how he feels about this?  His answer: “You know how women are sometimes”.  Hmm, no mention of his part in this…

Mayweather has a long and protracted history of perpetrating domestic abuse, with convictions reaching back as far as 2001. Just last year he made claims that “there are a lot worse things that go on in other people’s households”, adding that there’d never been any photographic evidence of bruises and bumps he’d caused. But we know that the truth of domestic abuse is often hidden behind closed doors.

Only yesterday, the Independent Police Complaints Commission published a report into the death of Hollie Gazzard, a hairdresser from Gloucester. She was brutally murdered by her ex-partner in front of horrified customers and colleagues at the salon where she worked.

Hollie and hundreds of other women who died at the hands of current or ex-partners will never be able to tell their truth. They’ll never be able to share the fear of living with abuse, how it affected their children and how they were hoping that someone would notice and ask the question.

It’s this truth – the horrendous reality of domestic abuse – that drives us to make sure all families live in safety.

We think that there are three truths that victims of abuse would want Floyd to hear.

The first truth is that all too often we miss opportunities to spot abuse and stop it: in the year before they get the help they need, most victims will have five contacts with public services and it will take almost three years before they get help. For professionals, it’s about knowing how to start the conversation. It’s knowing what to do if a victim or child tells them things aren’t right at home. But to help families become safe, we first need to find them.

The second truth is that victims of domestic abuse need to work with a skilled, trusted professional who can help them address the risk they face and meet their needs. Properly trained and well-resourced specialist domestic violence workers – Idvas – make all the difference. More than 60% of those helped by an Idva and Marac report that the abuse stops.

The third truth is that we need to resource these services properly. But the reality is that, despite ever-increasing caseloads, we still only have half the Idva capacity we need. No matter how good and dedicated the Idva, that level of work will impact on how well they are able to do their job.  Look at our Facebook page if you want to see powerful examples of how they are trying to meet the needs of their clients with ever rising caseloads.

If we create a model response to domestic abuse in every area, all families will get safe more quickly, and stay safe in the long-term. It’s a huge challenge, but one we’ve thought long and hard about. And our new strategy sets out how we begin to achieve this.

This is our truth to ending domestic abuse. What’s yours?

Oh and Floyd, if you are reading this, think again.