1.32 Safeguarding victims of domestic abuse during COVID-19: Challenges and opportunities

DASC (Domestic Abuse Safeguarding during Covid-19) is a UK- based research study, funded by the UKRI Rapid Response to Covid-19 research grants (ES/V015745/1). The study explores the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on domestic abuse (DA) safeguarding arrangements at a strategic and practice level from both professional and survivor perspectives.

The overall aim of the study is to inform the development of national safeguarding policies and practices regarding domestic abuse (DA) in pandemics and other emergency situations. We know that at a global level domestic abuse has increased during the pandemic and that accessing support during lockdowns is difficult. This study focuses on safeguarding practices of agencies to better understand the identification of, and response to families experiencing domestic abuse. We know that this has changed during the pandemic, but there little is known about the impact of such changes.

The project team is led by Professor Khatidja Chantler at Manchester Metropolitan University and CPRL (led by Dr Lis Bates) is a Co-investigator working on analysis of police data comparing pre-pandemic and during-pandemic policing responses to domestic abuse.

The study runs until May 2022 and further information, including findings and forthcoming events, can be found here: https://domesticabuse-safeguarding-covid19.co.uk/. The final project conference will take place online on 1 March 2022 - register for a place at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/domestic-abuse-safeguarding-during-covid-19-challenges-and-opportunities-tickets-244385281957