Lockdown has seen a huge increase in incidents of domestic abuse, with leading charity Refuge reporting a 700% increase in calls to their helpline in a single day.
This is as much of an issue, in fact more so, for disabled women as the rest of the population, as the Office for National Statistics found in 2016, when it published a report that found 16% of women with a long-term illness or disability had experienced domestic abuse, compared to 6.8% of non-disabled women.
Women’s Aid, a national charity working to end domestic abuse against women and children has produced a range of Coronavirus/COVID-19 Safety and Support Resources for survivors, friends, family, neighbours and community members.
Women’s Aid explain that “many survivors will be feeling unsafe isolating in a house with an abusive person, and isolated from their support networks. In partnership with fellow specialist organisations, we have put together some advice and information about support available.”
The resources produced by Women’s Aid include Safety and Wellbeing advice for survivors in British Sign Language, as well as several other languages.
Yo can find out more about reporting domestic abuse in Sheffield in our blog here
For more information and to download the resources, visit the Women’s Aid Coronavirus Safety and Support Resources page.
