Call for UK domestic violence refuges to get coronavirus funding

Domestic abuse experts are calling on the government to provide emergency funds as refuges prepare for an influx of referrals amid fears the Covid-19 outbreak will fuel violence in the home.

At least 15 violence against women and girls organisations, including Women’s Aid, have signed a letter to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government calling for action over one of the unintended consequences of the coronavirus lockdown.

In a separate intervention, the domestic abuse commissioner, Nicole Jacobs, has warned the government must provide support to the charities that provide lifeline services for victims of violence in the home throughout the crisis as they face major financial strain.

The letter, composed by the Public Interest Law Centre and Solace Women’s Aid, and which has also been signed by more than 30 civil society organisations and lawyers including the Refugee Council and Doughty Street Chambers, warns that the lockdown will cause rates of violence and abuse in the home to increase as people are trapped with abusive partners.

What is Covid-19?

It is caused by a member of the coronavirus family that has never been encountered before. Like other coronaviruses, it has come from animals.

What are the symptoms this coronavirus causes?

The virus can cause pneumonia-like symptoms. Those who have fallen ill are reported to suffer coughs, fever and breathing difficulties.

In the UK, the National Heath Service has defined the symptoms as:

• a high temperature - you feel hot to touch on your chest or back

• a new continuous cough - this means you've started coughing repeatedly

Should I go to the doctor if I have a cough?

Medical advice varies around the world - with many countries imposing travel bans and lockdowns to try and prevent the spread of the virus. In many place people are being told to stay at home rather than visit a doctor of hospital in person. Check with your local authorities.

In the UK, NHS advice is that anyone with symptoms should stay at home for at least 7 days. If you live with other people, they should stay at home for at least 14 days, to avoid spreading the infection outside the home.

How many people have been affected?

China’s national health commission confirmed human-to-human transmission in January. As of 31 March, more than 780,000 people have been infected in more than 170 countries, according to the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering.

There have been over 37,800 deaths globally. Just over 3,200 of those deaths have occurred in mainland China. Italy has been worst affected, with over 11,500 fatalities, and there have been over 7,700 deaths in Spain. The US now has more confirmed cases than any other country - more than 164,000. Many of those who have died had underlying health conditions, which the coronavirus complicated.

More than 166,000 people are recorded as having recovered from the coronavirus.

Isabella Mulholland, a domestic violence caseworker at the Public Interest Law Centre, said: “We are concerned about the disproportionate impact that lockdown measures are having on survivors of domestic violence. It is unacceptable for the government to simply point to a general fund which has been allocated to all those in need; instead, it must secure specific funding for survivors so as to ensure they are able to access specialist services and safe and suitable accommodation.

“The reality is that local authorities are unable – and in many cases unwilling – to support and protect women effectively unless the government provides adequate resources, guidance and training. Unless and until this happens, survivors will continue to suffer.”

The letter demands a separate emergency fund for local authorities to ensure they are able to adequately house survivors of domestic abuse appropriate locations.

Related: For people with an abusive partner, lockdown means captivity | Sian Norris

Speaking to the Guardian, Nicole Jacobs, who was appointed domestic abuse commissioner in September said early indicators showed an increase in demand for services run by charities for victims of domestic abuse.

The national domestic abuse helpline, run by the charity Refuge, saw a 65% increase in calls to the helpline on Saturday compared with the same day the previous week, while traffic to its website and use of web chat facilities have increased. Smaller helplines focused on family courts and male victims of violence have also increased.

Jacobs said smaller charities will come under significant pressure during the crisis and called for government assistance to keep the vital services afloat

She said: “This is going to bite smaller charities who able to fee earn to cover certain costs. It’s going to chip away at the resilience of these charities. There is a postcode lottery of the provision of these services. This is layering more stress on a rocky foundation.

“These are great services but they are going to struggle financially, if there is an overarching strategy from government or targeted to domestic abuse and sexual violence services that are going to struggle to make ends meet, and will be dipping into reserves, to get through the period.”

Karen Ingala Smith, the founder of a pioneering project that records the killing of women by men in the UK, said she had noted an increase in deaths in the past two weeks.

Ingala Smith, chief executive of domestic abuse charity Nia and founder of the Counting Dead Women project, , said initial analysis of her data suggests there had been “a higher rate of killings in the last few weeks”.

Her figures show at least eight women have been killed by men in the last two weeks, with a further four suspected cases. This is compared with 99 women who were killed by partners in the year to March 2019, which equates to nearly two a week.

“Women are isolated, trapped with abusive men, so they’re exposed. Women have less access to support, not just community support, but services like ours; women will not be able to have face to face meetings,” she said.

Official UK government advice for victims of domestic abuse during the public health crisis says it is in regular contact with the charity sector and the police to ensure that support services remain open during the outbreak.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has been approached for comment.

The Scottish government announced extra funding of £1.35m to Scottish Women’s Aid, to ensure the maintenance of key support services and alternative access via online video platforms and text messaging, as ministers insisted that the message to stay at home should not deter women from seeking urgent help.

At her daily briefing on Tuesday, the first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, said: “There is a real risk that women and children already subject to domestic abuse will feel even more isolated and vulnerable during this crisis, so this funding will ensure they have access to support services.”

Police Scotland said that it would be actively working to identify those most at risk, but that it was too early to assess the impact of coronavirus on incidents of domestic abuse across the country.