Understanding exploitation, domestic abuse and trauma-informed practice

The 25 November marked the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and is the beginning of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. It will culminate on 10 December, International Human Rights Day.

Violence against women and girls is any form of violence that is disproportionately perpetrated by men against women and girls. It includes domestic abuse, sexual violence, stalking and harassment, exploitation, female genital mutilation, forced marriage and ‘honour-based’ abuse, and online abuse.

In the UK it is estimated that 2.1 million people experience domestic abuse a year and although it is mainly women who are targeted there has been a surge of reports by men. Described as a ‘national emergency’ by Police chiefs with crimes affecting one in 12 women in England and Wales, the government has committed to halving violence against women and girls within a decade.

The 16 days focuses on raising awareness of the disproportionate impact of violence against women and girls, including domestic violence and abuse to sexual violence. It is a call for urgent action to tackle these issues. This period highlights the need for systemic change in policy and practice. 

We have collated the below resources that support practitioners to develop responses to exploitation, domestic abuse and child protection, and trauma-informed practice.

Sexual exploitation

Sexual exploitation is characterised by an imbalance of power, which is used to coerce, manipulate or deceive a person into sexual activity. This may be perpetrated physically, online or both. Survivors have disclosed experiences of violence, pregnancy and forced abortion and highlight the importance of service responses that are gender-sensitive, genuinely accessible, safe, trauma-informed and fulfil their legal duties.  

This year we will be developing learning for our adults' Partners on adult experiences of exploitation. Our adults Partnership Conference will explore a life course perspective to adult sexual exploitation.

We have a range of resources designed to build sector knowledge on children’s risk and experience of exploitation. Video resources share findings from the Innovate project on how trauma-informed practice is being used to support young people experiencing extra-familial risk and harm.

Domestic abuse, coercive control and mental capacity

Although domestic abuse has been a focus in child protection for some time, understanding domestic abuse as an adult safeguarding issue is a later development.

The Care Act 2014 statutory guidance specifies domestic violence as a form of abuse (paras 14.17 & 14.20). It can encompass a range of abusive, controlling and coercive behaviours. The coercive nature of domestic abuse, and the anticipation and fear of harm that it can generate, may also limit or compromise an individual’s ability to protect themselves.

We recently published practice guidance for social care practitioners on navigating complex mental capacity decisions in social care. One guide looks specifically at supporting people experiencing domestic abuse, particularly where mental capacity and coercive control are concerns.

Rethinking domestic abuse in child protection

The Rethinking domestic abuse in child protection (RDAC) research project aims to better understand and improve the national response to domestic abuse and child protection.

Bringing together a team of researchers, domestic abuse specialists and experts in supporting, the open access resources explore some of the issues concerning the policing of domestic violence and abuse where children are involved. Further findings from the RDAC research will be published next year.

A recent article on Policing, child protection and domestic violence and abuse discusses some of the key issues. Such as a belief amongst frontline police that their role is shifting towards a social services focus, which can at times impact their relationships with victims/survivors.

Identifying and responding to domestic abuse in children's social care

The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 brought in changes that recognise children who witness domestic abuse as victims in their own right, even if they are not physically harmed. These changes acknowledge how witnessing violence is in harmful.

At a recent Research in Practice event colleagues from Women’s Aid shared learning from their report Nineteen More Child Homicides.

The report tells the stories of children who have tragically been killed by a parent who is a perpetrator of domestic abuse through child contact (formally or informally arranged). Findings illustrate the need for a culture shift at all levels to domestic abuse from professionals involved in child contact arrangements. Including a great awareness of coercive control, and a need to focus on patterns of behaviour rather than incidents, and appropriate support for parents who are victims.

Trauma-informed care with children and young people

Trauma often underpins many of the challenges faced by parents, children and families who are referred to children’s social care. When we talk about trauma, we are broadly referring to the impact life threatening, physically or emotionally harmful events have on a person’s function and wellbeing. Our video on what do we mean by trauma gives an overview.

Recognising the impact of these experiences on children needs to be central and in this video Dr. Danny Taggart explains what trauma-informed care might look like to children and young people with lived experience of trauma. He reflects on the importance of giving young people agency and choice, balanced with responsibility of addressing risk and harm. It also advocates for practitioners understanding unique cultural, historical and gender contexts.

Our recent briefing on support around children who have experienced developmental trauma focuses on developmental trauma, which arises as a result of early and repeated traumatic experiences, such as abuse and neglect, within a child’s important relationships. It provides information and tools for practitioners working with children who have experienced developmental trauma, as well as their parents and carers.

Building safety, connection and trust with trauma-experienced parents

Trauma-informed approaches also support practitioners to build connection, safety and trust with parents. Our Practice Guide summarises findings from interviews with trauma-experienced mothers about safeguarding involvement in relation to their children. It provides guidance about how practitioners can practice in a trauma-informed way to build connection, safety and trust with trauma-experienced parents.