Foreword
Over 2.1 million people a year in England and Wales experience domestic abuse1. It can impact individuals regardless of their gender, ethnicity, age, sexuality, socioeconomic background and religion and can result in a range of negative and harmful effects on health, wellbeing and outcomes in life. Domestic abuse affects the whole family, and prevention and responses must recognise the immediate impacts which domestic abuse may have on an individual or family, as well as its long-term
consequences.
In addition to the personal effects, domestic abuse is estimated to cost society in England and Wales £66 billion annually, with considerable costs to the economy, health services, criminal justice responses and most significantly the human cost, with physical and emotional harms incurred by victims estimated to cost £47 billion annually.
In Gloucestershire, many different services, both statutory and voluntary, work to support families and individuals affected by domestic abuse. These services engage with the complex and often chronic nature of domestic abuse and collaborate to challenge it. The Gloucestershire Domestic Abuse Local Partnership Board (DA LPB) looks to strengthen and coordinate our responses across all services in the county. We work strongly as a partnership to ensure that those at risk of, or experiencing, domestic
abuse in Gloucestershire have the support and service provision that they need.
No person should experience domestic abuse, and through this strategy and its clear commitments, we will work together to prevent abuse from happening. Aiming to strengthen our service provision, learning from latest research and understanding what works best enables us to continually improve our effectiveness in tackling domestic abuse across the county. Most importantly, we will listen to those with lived experience to help shape our local approach.
This strategy builds on the achievements from the previous 2021-2024 strategy that has seen:
- The development of a consultation network to embed survivor voice into the work of the partnership
- The ongoing commissioning and development of specialist services to support victims and their children, including a focus on the statutory duty to provide support within safe accommodation
- The ongoing development of and investment in interventions that tackle perpetrator behaviour
- The continued approach to assessing local data and need to ensure a focus on addressing gaps in provision and approach
- The development of awareness raising approaches to encourage understanding and reporting, as well as challenging societal attitudes
- The development of local policy, research into best practice, and training roll out across the county
We recognise that a collaborative approach to developing and delivering our priorities is fundamental to preventing and responding to domestic abuse in the most effective way. Successful delivery will require strong leadership, commitment and engagement from partner organisations.
By working collaboratively, we can come together to end any acceptance of domestic abuse and create lasting change that will make our community a safer place to live.
Siobhan Farmer,
Chair - Gloucestershire domestic abuse local partnership board, Director of Public Health, Gloucestershire County Council
Ruth Saunders,
Vice chair - RUTH SAUNDERS
VICE CHAIR – Gloucestershire domestic abuse local partnership board, Director of Communities, Gloucester City Council
Supporting statements
Cllr Paul Hodgkinson, Cabinet Member for Public Health, Communities and Fire:
“Domestic abuse affects thousands of people in Gloucestershire every year, and whilst it mostly harms women and children, it can happen to anyone. The new Gloucestershire Tackling Domestic Abuse Strategy (2025–28) outlines our commitment to work together to protect people from harm, help survivors rebuild their lives, and hold to account those who abuse others. The strategy draws on national and local evidence and, most importantly, is informed by the experiences of victims and survivors. I believe that together with our partner organisations we can make Gloucestershire a safer place for everyone, and by delivering on the priorities outlined in this strategy we can achieve that“.
Chris Nelson, Police and Crime Commissioner for Gloucestershire:
“Women and girls - and sometimes men - are disproportionately victims of domestic abuse and sexual violence. This also includes stalking and harassment, female genital mutilation, forced marriage and honour based abuse, exploitation and abuse of women and girls in online spaces.
Perpetrators have operated behind closed doors, confident they will evade detection, but I am determined that we continue our efforts to have a sustainable solution to prevent abuse from happening. To that end, I will continue to work with our experts in the county to identify areas where we can improve the response and ensure that those who are suffering have the support they need.
This strategy recognises both the immediate impact and long-term consequences that domestic abuse may have on an individual or family. It also underpins my commitment to the Domestic Abuse Joint Justice Plan, fulfilling the pledges in my Police and Crime Prevention plan and will ensure a consistent approach to tackling this harmful crime”.
Interim Chief Constable Maggie Blyth, Gloucestershire Constabulary:
“Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG), of which domestic abuse is a significant proportion, has reached epidemic levels in England and Wales, requiring a dedicated focus to tackle this issue across both policing and wider society. In 2024 I published the national threat assessment where policing estimated that 1 in 12 women will be victims of VAWG and 1 in 12 men in the population will be perpetrators. The solutions and prevention of domestic abuse will never be achieved by policing alone but remain a societal issue. However, tackling crimes like domestic abuse, stalking and harassment, rape and serious sexual offences for policing have remained my key focus since I became the NPCC1 lead for VAWG in 2021. I am pleased that in May 2025 the government announced the establishment of a new national centre for VAWG and Public Protection allowing policing to tackle these crimes in a coordinated and consistent manner across the UK, in the same way policing tackles terrorism and serious and organised crime.
Policing remains entirely supportive to the government pledge to half VAWG over the next decade through its Safer Streets mission.
Domestic abuse accounts for one fifth of crime in most police forces and is the largest volume and high risk crime for Gloucestershire. As Chief Constable I remain committed to tackling the crimes associated with domestic abuse, alongside other leaders of statutory services, voluntary sector and wider communities across the county. I recognise that this issue cannot be tackled by policing alone, and am pleased to endorse this countywide partnership strategy.
If we are to truly address domestic abuse and reduce its impact on victims and their children, we must ensure a clear partnership response from both our statutory and voluntary sector organisations. We must also ensure that the voice of those with lived experience is at the heart of our response, a key
element of the Gloucestershire Tackling Domestic Abuse Strategy. Together we can turn the tables on the perpetrators, predominantly male, who cause harm to so many women and children in particular across our communities”.
Sarah Truelove, NHS Gloucestershire ICB Chief Executive:
“We know that domestic abuse has such a profound impact on victims’ lives, affecting both their physical and mental health, self-worth and wellbeing, financial position, work life, home life, and their integration into society. Working as part of a responsive and eager to listen partnership in Gloucestershire to develop this strategy has been vitally important and we have endeavoured to make sure the voice of victims informs the work we do at every step. The strategy is so much more than just a document, it is our commitment to each and every victim that we will bring about change. Early intervention and prevention are key components of the work we have signed up to which we sincerely hope will make Gloucestershire a better place for the future.”
