Assessing and Responding to the Impact of Domestic Abuse

The aim of this procedure is to identify the potential impact of domestic abuse on children and young people and the role of individual agencies providing services to adults who are parents/carers or services for babies, children and young people in identifying and responding to children and young people experiencing or affected by domestic abuse, including assessing risk. It does not replace any relevant organisational or safeguarding guidance in respect of the adult victim or perpetrator.

The statutory guidance document, Working Together to Safeguard Children (2018), sets out what professionals and organisations need to do, individually and in partnership with other agencies, to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people. This remains core guidance on supporting children who are victims of domestic abuse. Working Together also highlights that everyone who works with children has a responsibility for keeping them safe and that multi-agency working and information sharing is essential to ensure that children and families receive the right help at the right time.

 

1. Introduction

1.1 Domestic abuse has a significant impact on children and young people of all ages (up to 18 years old). Section 3 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 (‘the 2021 Act’) recognises children as victims of domestic abuse for the purposes of the Act if the child sees, hears, or experiences the effects of the abuse, and is related to, or falls under “parental responsibility” of, the victim and/or perpetrator of the domestic abuse. A child might therefore be considered a victim of domestic abuse under the 2021 Act where one parent is abusing another parent, or where a parent is abusing, or being abused by, a partner or relative.

1.2 This procedure is to be used to ensure the likelihood and severity of the impact of domestic abuse on a child is considered, assessed and managed promptly and effectively. It involves the practitioner thinking about any child within the family, the nature of risk and also the protective factors for the child. It requires practitioners to seek information and use their professional judgement.

1.3 Professionals in all agencies can become aware of domestic abuse being present in the lives of children and families they work with through:

Disclosure prompted by professionals from all agencies using routine questioning or the identification of signs that domestic abuse is taking place. With the exception of the police, all agencies should refer using the SAFER Referral Form. (Police will use the PPN (Public Protection Notice) as their referral mechanism). Unprompted disclosure from a child or parent

  • Any third party (e.g. neighbours, friends or family members)

1.4 Professionals should refer to the relevant Threshold document to inform and assist in their decision making.

 

2. The Role of the Multi-disciplinary Children Hubs

2.1 A multi-disciplinary Children’s Hub provides a one front door model where professionals gather information and make decisions about which pathways to follow for different contacts and referrals. This may lead to an assessment by children’s social care, early help or a response from universal services.

2.2 A Domestic Abuse Senior Practitioner is part of this Multi-Disciplinary Team at the Front Door of Children’s Services offering specialist domestic abuse information and advice to partners, professionals, and families. The role participates in multi-agency discussions at the Front Door to ensure that families experiencing or affected by domestic abuse receive the right support at the right time. It will inform decision making in relation to risk and promote an integrated whole family approach so victims, perpetrators and their children are directed to the most appropriate service/s for support and intervention.

2.3 Where the Police are called to a domestic abuse incident they will also follow their internal procedures in respect of Operation Encompass. Operation Encompass is a process by which key adults in schools, academies, colleges and some nurseries are informed by the police that a child attending their premises is a child within a household where domestic abuse takes place either within or outside the home and they may have been present, witnessed or been involved in it or police suspect the incident will have had an impact on the child in some way even if they did not witness it.

2.4 All police call outs to incidents of domestic abuse where it is identified that either the perpetrator or victim has children or where there are children linked to the address where the incident has taken place, will be risk assessed and the appropriate referrals made to social care in relation to those children. The multi-disciplinary children’s hubs will then consider each referral and assess the most appropriate action.

 

3. Definitions

3.1 The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 provided a definition of domestic abuse: Behaviour of a person (“A”) towards another person (“B”) is “domestic abuse” if This can include but is not limited to the following types of abuse:

A and B are each aged 16 or over and are personally connected to each other, and the behaviour is abusive. Behaviour is “abusive” if it consists of any of the following:

  • Physical or Sexual abuse
  • Violent or threatening behaviour;
  • Controlling or coercive behaviour
  • Economic abuse
  • Psychological or Emotional or other abuse

and it does not matter whether the behaviour consists of a single incident or a course of conduct.

Two people are 'personally connected' to each other if any of the following applies:

  • they are, or have been, married to each other;
  • they are, or have been, civil partners of each other;
  • they have agreed to marry one another (whether or not the agreement has been terminated);
  • they have entered into a civil partnership agreement (whether or not the agreement has been terminated);
  • they are, or have been, in an intimate personal relationship with each other;
  • they each have, or there has been a time when they each have had, a parental relationship in relation to the same child
  • they are relatives.

The Domestic Abuse Act now recognises children as victims of domestic abuse where the child:

  • sees or hears, or experiences the effects of, the abuse, and
  • is related to A or B

 

3.2 Examples of domestic abuse are further explained below:

3.2.1 Controlling behaviour is: a range of acts designed to make a person subordinate and/or dependent by isolating them from sources of support, exploiting their resources and capacities for personal gain, depriving them of the means needed for independence, resistance and escape and regulating their everyday behaviour.

3.2.2 Coercive behaviour is: an act or a pattern of acts of assault, threats, humiliation and intimidation or other abuse that is used to harm, punish, or frighten their victim.

3.2.3 This definition includes 'honour’ based violence, female genital mutilation (FGM) and forced marriage, and is clear that victims are not confined to one gender or ethnic group.

3.2.4 Intimate Partners -means that there must be, or have been, a relationship with a degree of continuity or stability. The relationship must also have, or have had (or be reasonably supposed to have or have had); a sexual aspect such as in the relationship a husband and wife or between others generally recognised as a couple, including same sex couples. The partners or ex-partners need not be living together on a full-time, continuing basis and need not ever have done so.

3.2.5 Family Members includes mother, father, son, daughter, brother, sister, grandparents, in-laws and step-family whether directly related or not.

3.2.6 Psychological Abuse could include abuse arising out of gender, race, religion, age or disability; humiliation or ridiculing the person or their conduct, bullying or intimidation; deprivation of ordinary social contact.

3.2.7 Physical Abuse means any offence of violence ranging from common assaults to murder.

3.2.8 Emotional Abuse means any harm deliberately or recklessly inflicted on another person's emotional well-being.

3.2.9 Financial Abuse is the abuse of power in a relationship where one partner maintains control over the other's money.

 

4. Impact on children

4.1.1 The Domestic Abuse Act (2021) acknowledges that children are victims of domestic abuse if they see or hear, or experience the effect of, the abuse, and are related to either the victim or the perpetrator.

4.1.2   Children and young people should be offered support based on their individual needs, with a range of interventions, so that each child is able to access the specialised help they require. This could include access to psychoeducational support, therapeutic services (for example, counselling) or specialist children’s victim support workers or an Independent Domestic Violence Adviser (IDVA) who is able to work with children and young people. A strengths-based approach to recovery, building on ‘the resilient blocks in the child’s life’, has been shown to be effective in interventions with children and young people.

4.1.3 Domestic abuse often exists as the result of and/or alongside other presenting problems for the parent/s e.g. drug and alcohol abuse, mental health difficulties, poor childhood experiences. These factors increase the difficulty the parent has in providing adequate care and can result in abuse or neglect of the child. Domestic abuse can impact on the development and well-being of a child in a number of ways.

These include:

  • Increased risk of physical injury (either caused directly or as an attempt by the child to intervene)
  • Anxiety and distress;
  • Unborn children;
  • Risk of injury to the foetus due to violence during pregnancy e.g. brain damage or fractures;
  • Miscarriage;
  • Premature birth;
  • Difficulties for children from BME backgrounds may be compounded by difficulty in seeking help, language and interpreting problems, and the loss of community protective factors.

 

4.2. Age Specific Factors

4.2.1 Unborn children and those under 1 year old 

  • Injury;
  • Not meeting developmental milestones;
  • Insecure attachment;
  • Frequent illness;
  • In almost a third of cases, domestic abuse begins or escalates during pregnancy and is associated with increased rates of miscarriage, premature birth, foetal injury and foetal death. Mothers may be prevented from seeking or receiving proper ante-natal or post natal care which may impact on attachment.

4.2.2 Young children (aged 1 to 12 years old)

  • Increased risk of sexual abuse;
  • Aggression towards family and/or peers;
  • Anxiety and withdrawal;
  • Blaming themselves for the domestic abuse;
  • Bed-wetting;
  • Behavioural problems;
  • Fear of actual or threatened violence;
  • Difficulties at school;
  • Eating disorders.

4.2.3 Adolescents (aged 12 to 17 years old)

Adolescents may exhibit the same symptoms as younger children but in addition may also exhibit:

  • Normalising abusive behaviours and therefore accepting them in their own relationships.
  • Actual or threatened violence/sexual abuse from a partner (in a survey of girls age 13-17 one in six said they had been hit by their boyfriend, one is sixteen that they had been raped. See Partner exploitation and violence in teenage intimate relationships. NSPCC 2009;
  • Feelings of fear, sadness, loneliness despair and/or anger;
  • Behavioural problems;
  • Running away;
  • Self-harming, including eating disorders;
  • Difficulty with friendships. (It should be noted that friends can act as confidants and offer support. However, in some circumstances issues such as behavioural or withdrawal or an inability to invite a friend home may make it difficult to make/retain close friends).

5. Considering the impact of domestic abuse where there is a child in the family

5.1 The following is to help you when considering the likelihood and severity of the impact of domestic abuse on a child; it is not intended to replace professional judgement but when read alongside the relevant Threshold document should help you to determine the action you need to take; Early Help Assessment, Referral to Children’s Social Care and or notification to the Police. Follow Tees Safeguarding Children Procedures Making and Responding to a Referral advising how to make a referral.

5.2 You need to think about the nature of risk but also the protective factors for the child. Examples of protective factors include:

  • A sound safety plan/provision of support services has been put into place for the victim that can be depended upon to meet the needs of any children in the family.
  • The victim of domestic abuse receives support to strengthen the relationship between the child and the non-abusing parent and has insight into their situation and is able to take the appropriate action to significantly reduce the impact of this on the child/children and is sufficiently supported.

 

6. Assessing Risk 

6.1 If any of the following factors are present they are likely to have a direct impact on the safety and well-being of the child and a referral to Children’s Social Care and the Police should be made.

  • If the DASH (Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Harassment Risk Identification Checklist) has identified the victim as high risk and meets the criteria for referral to MARAC (Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference), consider raising this for consideration at the next available conference.
  • The child has been hurt and/or threatened with abuse by the perpetrator of the domestic abuse.
  • Substance misuse or alcohol abuse, learning disability/difficulties or mental health issues
  • The presence of an unborn child or child under 1 year of age.

7. Assessing Risk 

7.1 If any of the following factors are present they are likely to have a direct impact on the safety and well-being of the child and a referral to Children’s Social Care and the Police should be made.

  • If the DASH (Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Harassment Risk Identification Checklist) has identified the victim as high risk and meets the criteria for referral to MARAC (Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference), consider raising this for consideration at the next available conference. For more information, see Resources for Marac meetings | Safelives
  • The child has been physically hurt and/or threatened with abuse by the perpetrator of the domestic abuse.
  • Substance misuse or alcohol abuse, learning disability/difficulties or mental health issues
  • The presence of an unborn child or child under 1 year of age.
  • Vulnerable young parents, including parents who have recently left care and may need extra support.

 

8. Useful Guidance Pathway Tools, Contacts and Websites: