Domestic Abuse

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Support services for domestic abuse in Oxfordshire

• The Oxfordshire Domestic Abuse Service provides support to victims (female and male), their families and friends - you can contact them on 0800 731 0055 - Monday to Friday, 10am to 7pm. For detailed information about the service they provide, visit the A2Dominion website
• The National Domestic Abuse 24 hour Helpline number is 0808 2000 247
• Men’s Advice Line - 0808 8010327 or visit the Men's advice line website
• If you are concerned about your own abusive behaviour you can speak in confidence to Respect on 0808 8024040 or visit the Respect phoneline website

What is domestic abuse?

“Domestic abuse is any single incident, course of conduct or pattern of abusive behaviour between individuals aged 16 or over who are personally connected to each other as a result of being, or having been, intimate partners or family members, regardless of gender or sexuality. Children who see, hear or experience the effects of the abuse and are related to either of the parties are also considered victims of domestic abuse.”

1. Physical Abuse: This includes hitting, slapping, punching, kicking, burning, strangulation, and any other form of physical harm 
2. Emotional Abuse: This involves name-calling, insulting, blaming, extreme jealousy, intimidation, shaming, humiliating, and isolating the victim 
3. Psychological Abuse: This includes threats, manipulation, gaslighting (making the victim doubt their own reality), and controlling behaviours
4. Sexual Abuse: Any non-consensual sexual activity, coercion into sex acts, or sexual exploitation 
5. Financial Abuse: Controlling or restricting access to financial resources, stealing money, or preventing the victim from working 
6. Technological Abuse: Using technology to monitor, harass, stalk, or control the victim. This can include hacking into personal accounts or using tracking devices 
7. Neglect: Failing to provide basic needs such as food, shelter, medical care, and emotional support 
8. Cultural Identity Abuse: Attacking or undermining the victim's cultural identity or beliefs 
9. Immigration Abuse: Threatening deportation or manipulating immigration status to control the victim

Help and support for domestic abuse victims/survivors

If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, you should always dial 999 and ask for the Police.

Remember, if you are a victim, you are not to blame. Domestic abuse is a crime.

If you are concerned about a family member, friend or colleague you can contact the support services listed above for advice. 

Abuse increases when a person leaves or has recently left an abusive partner. Please seek advice from a specialist support service if you are considering leaving.

Domestic abuse affects both women and men. Everyone has the right to safety in their own home and is entitled to support if they are experiencing domestic abuse.

Creating a safety plan against domestic abuse

If you are experiencing or at risk of domestic violence, consider the following safety plan steps:

• talk to a trusted person
• identify a safe place to go to if you need to escape
• prepare an emergency bag with essentials like clothes, medication, and important documents (passport, birth certificates, benefit books). Store it safely with someone you trust
• develop a code word for family, friends, neighbours or children so that they can call the Police for you in an emergency
• maintain a diary of events, including any abusive letters, emails or text messages, only if it is safe to do so
• if an argument starts do you have a safe room, with an exit, that you and your children can go to
• if you have a mobile phone, keep it with you and always charged.  Check to see if there is a tracker device on the phone. 

Domestic Abuse Housing Alliance (DAHA) membership

We are members of the Domestic Abuse Housing Alliance. DAHA's mission is to improve the housing sector’s response to domestic abuse through the introduction and adoption of an established set of standards and an accreditation process. 

Visit the DAHA website for details.

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