Multi-agency approach crucial to prevent domestic abuse deaths

Findings from the Domestic Homicide Project released today reveal that 262 people died in England and Wales as a result of domestic abuse in the past year.

The annual report tracks the scale and nature of domestic abuse-related deaths in quick-time, both from the previous year and across a four-year period, and is the only dataset of its kind in England and Wales.

The findings and analysis were informed by families bereaved by fatal domestic abuse who continue to drive awareness and change across policing, government and partners. This year, specific research was also undertaken to examine deaths where someone had fallen from height in partnership with the Killed Women Network.

Key findings:

262 deaths were recorded between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024:

•             98 suspected suicide following domestic abuse (SVSDA)
•             80 intimate partner homicides (IPH)
•             39 adult family homicides
•            28 unexpected deaths
•            11 child deaths
•             6 ‘other’ (where the victim and suspect lived together, but were not related or intimate partners

22 cases of deaths due to a fall from height were recorded across 13 forces during the four-year period, of those:

• 36% were recorded as SVSDA, 27% unexpected deaths, 23% IPH and 14% AFH
• Notably, three victims (14%) were pregnant at the time of their death
• In 70% of cases the suspect was arrested

For the second year in a row, suspected suicides following domestic abuse have overtaken the number of homicides involving current or previous partners. This reflects increased awareness and progress made against recommendations in the project’s last report, which focused on improving policing’s ability to better recognise and record the link between domestic abuse and suicide.

Over four years (1 April 2020 – 31 March 2024), the number of people killed by their current or previous partner consistently represents around a third of domestic abuse-related deaths each year.

Assistant Commissioner Louisa Rolfe, national policing lead for domestic abuse, said:

“The sustained nature of domestic homicide shows how deeply ingrained violence against women and girls is in our communities.

“The Domestic Homicide Project has now recorded over 1000 domestic abuse-related deaths across a four year period. The scale and impact is incomprehensible and as a society, we cannot delay action to prevent future deaths.”

Multi-agency footprint

The report demonstrates the need for a multi-agency response that spans the wider criminal justice system, healthcare and local authorities such as social services, to tackle domestic abuse and prevent future deaths, particularly suicides. In cases of SVSDA, nine in ten victims and/or prior domestic abuse perpetrators were known to partner agencies.

Across the four-year dataset, the most commonly recorded risk factors in relation to the suspects were mental ill health, a history of coercive and controlling behaviour (CCB), alcohol use and drug misuse, representing a key opportunity to intercept perpetrators through healthcare, substance misuse and mental health services.

Some of the risk factors were more prominent in certain types of deaths; for example, CCB was prominent in cases of IPH, SVSDA and unexpected deaths, whilst suspected mental ill health was particularly notable in cases of AFH.

AC Rolfe continues: “The data reinforces the critical need for policing to work with other agencies to identify those at risk of being both a perpetrator or a victim of domestic abuse. A preventative approach is the only way to stop the widespread harm of domestic abuse in all its forms.”

Recommendations and police response

Police forces have made significant changes in relation to the recommendations made in last year’s Domestic Homicide Report, with most forces incorporating:

• Specific training for officers to raise awareness of the link between domestic abuse (DA) and suicide. Review teams are proactively working to better identify cases of suicide with links to DA.
• Updated unexpected death policies, there are explicit procedures to prompt officers to consider DA or CCB in unexpected deaths or suspected suicides and carry out system checks.
• Growing number of cases of SVSDA submitted for Domestic Homicide Reviews and increasing rate of posthumous charges for domestic abuse offences, reflecting improved ability to identify these cases.

AC Rolfe said: “We have a much better understanding of the complex nature of domestic abuse than ever before, but there is more for policing to do to ensure that every domestic-abuse related death is properly recognised, and where appropriate, adequately investigated.

“54% of suspects of domestic homicide were previously known to police as perpetrators of domestic abuse, highlighting the importance of a prompt, robust police response from the outset of a report. That is why the broader police response to domestic abuse is focused on driving improvements and consistency in offender management and better protection for victims.”

New protective orders with longer-term, more robust safety measures and quicker charging decisions for cases are currently being piloted in select forces, with the aim of better supporting victims through the criminal justice system.

In addition, police forces are rolling out video technology to respond to non-urgent reports of domestic abuse, which has shown to increase arrest rates, secure quicker convictions and bring the response time down from 32 hours to an average of three minutes. Alongside this work, select police forces have also began piloting Raneem’s Law, embedding specially trained domestic abuse support in police contact rooms to get the right support to victims reporting domestic abuse.

The recommendations from this year’s report focus on better information sharing and a more joined-up approach across policing, government and other agencies, including healthcare and mental health and substance misuse services, to better recognise and intercept domestic abuse, particularly in young people. Additional recommendations highlight the need to continue to strengthen policing and the wider criminal justice system’s approach to investigating and prosecuting in cases of SVSDA.

AC Rolfe said: “We are incredibly grateful to the families of those bereaved by domestic abuse for sharing their insights with us, they continue to be a driving force in effecting change and preventing future deaths.”

Julie Devey, Chair of Killed Women, said:

‘’Every life lost following domestic abuse leaves behind a family heartbroken. For too long, these deaths have been treated as ‘unavoidable tragedies’ - but they are not. They are preventable. Today’s important report reflects that too often perpetrators or victims are known to agencies, but they fail to act. We must ensure a system that joins the dots and intervenes before it’s too late. 

“We also welcome the report findings which make clear what we have long said: women are dying in suspicious circumstances - for example from falls - or from suicide, where there is a history of domestic abuse, without adequate investigation. We welcome the recommendation which compels police, in all cases of unexpected deaths, to investigate the history of domestic abuse. If the government is serious about ending violence against women, these recommendations should be enforced.’’

Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women & Girls, Jess Phillips said:

"Every death related to domestic abuse is a life cut short and a devastating tragedy. The better we understand the links between domestic abuse and homicides, suicides and unexpected deaths, the better equipped we are to prevent them from happening in the first place. That’s why the government has funded this vital research to shine a light on the scale of the problem.

“This report rightly demands coordinated action across government, police and partner agencies to tackle these issues head on – and we are already cracking on with work to put the voices of victims, their families and friends, and key stakeholders front and centre of this. Our upcoming violence against women and girls strategy will set out our ambition and concrete actions to strengthen our response to perpetrators and deliver on our mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade.”