As we continue to support Sexual Abuse and Sexual Violence Awareness Week, our Abuse team explains how they may be able to assist survivors.

Join us in supporting the fifth Sexual Abuse and Sexual Violence Awareness Week from 7th-13th February 2022.

According to research carried out by Women’s Aid, one in seven (14.2%) of children and young people under the age of 18 will have experienced domestic abuse at some point in their childhood.

As part of our series of blogs supporting 16 days of Action Against Domestic Violence, we focus on the impact of domestic abuse on the mental health of victims.

Emotional abuse is a grey area within the realm of abuse as many people don’t know what constitutes emotional abuse or how it is perpetrated on an individual. Victims of emotional abuse believe that abuse is a ‘strong’ word and don’t think they are ‘abused’ but this is far from the truth.

During the COVID-19 pandemic our Family team have seen an increase in domestic abuse cases with an increasing number of those being subjected to abuse being men.

Honour based violence is an umbrella term used to describe practices which punishes individuals for their disobedience.

Elder abuse is defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a single or repeated act, or lack of appropriate action, occurring in any relationship where there is an expectation of trust, which causes harm or distress to an older person. WHO further outlines that elder abuse constitutes a violation of human rights which can take the form of physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological/emotional abuse, financial abuse, neglect and serious loss of dignity and respect.