There’s still more to be done to raise awareness of domestic abuse
Posted by Jenni James on 18 March 2025
New data has been released from a survey commissioned by domestic abuse charity Refuge, showing that domestic abuse awareness in the UK is worryingly low. Figures show that three quarters of UK adults are unaware of the prevalence of domestic abuse, and the majority are unlikely to report ‘less obvious’ forms of abuse like economic, psychological and technology-facilitated abuse.
These figures go to show just how much there is to be done to make sure that people in the UK are properly informed about domestic abuse and able to recognise the signs in their own relationships. Particularly concerning were the responses from younger people, who seem to be less likely than adults to recognise certain forms of abuse: for example, only 57% of 18-24 year olds identified ‘sharing images of them without consent’ as abuse.
There was also a difference in how men and women recognised some types of abuse. Just 80% of men identified ‘closely monitoring or tracking someone’s spending’ as a form of abuse, compared to 80% of women.
In Churches Too
We also know that lack of domestic abuse awareness is an issue in our churches. Our research shows that only 36% of churchgoers believed domestic abuse to be a problem in their church, despite the fact that 1 in 4 churchgoers will experience it. Over half of respondents said that they had never heard domestic abuse talked about in sermons or preaching, and less than a third considered their church to be adequately equipped to deal with disclosures.
We must act to make sure that men and women of all ages and faith backgrounds are informed when it comes to domestic abuse. At Restored, we’ve developed three levels of high quality domestic abuse training to do just that: busting myths about domestic abuse and equipping individuals and churches to respond effectively. You can find out more about our training here.
Perhaps you could use this March, which is Women’s History Month, as an opportunity to talk to your friends about domestic abuse. Simple things like sharing statistics and signposting information on social media can make a huge difference, and might just help someone access support – why not give it a go? You can find shareable posts over on Restored’s social media pages (we’re @restoreduk on Instagram and @Rest0redFacebook).
Together, we can change the story for survivors of domestic abuse, and it starts by speaking up.
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We’d love to visit your event or service to talk about domestic abuse and what an effective response can look like.
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