April Newsletter
Welcome Message for April
Dear NIDAS Domestic Abuse Champions.
As spring brings renewal and growth, we are excited to share the latest updates, events and insights from NIDAS and the Domestic Abuse Sector.
Whether you are a long-standing Domestic Abuse Champion, or new to our network, we thank you for being part of our community. Your continued support, collaboration, and commitment makes all the difference.
Read on to discover what is ‘blooming’ in April.
NIDAS news Updates – April 2025
We’re delighted to welcome Julie to our NIDAS Community Development and Recovery Team! We’re sure many of you will have the chance to meet her during upcoming refresher training sessions and events—be sure to say hello when you do!
A warm welcome also to Caitlan, who has joined our NIDAS Triage Team. Caitlan will be playing a key role in processing referrals into NIDAS, helping ensure timely and effective support reaches those who need it.
We’re thrilled to have both Julie and Caitlan on board—welcome to the NIDAS team!
Thank you to everyone who has booked onto our events and refresher training sessions so far!
Our upcoming event on 8th May – Eyes Wide Open (Stalking Awareness) – is now fully booked. We’re thrilled by the level of interest and engagement!
Please remember to keep an eye on our portal for future events and training opportunities throughout the year to ensure you don’t miss out.
Our refresher training session on Male Victims of Abuse is also now fully booked, but we encourage you to explore the range of other refresher training sessions available across 2025.
If you’re unable to book onto a session or event, it means all spaces have been filled. We appreciate your understanding and continued enthusiasm, and we’re looking forward to seeing many of you at our upcoming sessions
Connect with Our Specialist IDVA Team
Our dedicated team of Independent Domestic Violence Advisors (IDVAs) are available to visit and speak with teams across services, sharing their expertise on a range of specialist areas.
If you’re interested in learning more from our specialists or would like to arrange a session for your team, please get in touch with us at dachampions@nidasnorfolk.co.uk.
Our specialist IDVA team includes advisors with expertise in:
- Male Victims
- Diverse Communities
- LGBTQ+ Individuals
- Older People
- Disabilities
- Unmet Needs / Hard-to-Reach Groups
- Substance Misuse
These sessions are a great opportunity to deepen your understanding, ask questions, and strengthen collaborative working. We look forward to hearing from you!
Domestic Abuse Facts & Figures
Key Statistics:
- 1 in 4 survivors who are in debt owe more than £5,000. (Refuge)
- An estimated £14.4 billion of debt in the UK is directly linked to economic abuse. (Refuge)
- 3 in 4 adults are unaware of the true scale of domestic abuse in the UK. (Refuge)
- 1 in 3 young men believe that forcing sex isn’t abusive. (Refuge)
Impact on Women and Children:
- Over 50% of women in refuge services are mothers with children. (Women’s Aid)
- 71% of domestic abuse services are delivering children’s support programmes without dedicated funding. (Women’s Aid)
- 60% of refuge referrals were turned away last year due to a lack of available space. (Women’s Aid)
The Influence of Online Misogyny:
- Women’s Aid research shows a strong link between exposure to misogynistic content online and the development of unhealthy relationship beliefs.
- Children who view misogynistic online content are 5 times more likely to believe that physically hurting someone is acceptable if followed by an apology. (Women’s Aid)
Industry News – DA and or Victim Commissioner – the Government, National/Local Policy etc
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- Mums share reality of child on parent violence and abuse – https://vm.tiktok.com/ZNdNf5WkH/
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- A report has found that for a second year in a row, the number of victims of domestic abuse who took their own lives in England and Wales, is higher than the number of people killed by their partner – Suicides among domestic abuse victims surpass homicides – BBC News
- Kiena Dawes took her own life in 2022 due to suffering domestic abuse by Ryan Wellings. Kiena’s mother has opened, ‘The Behind Closed Doors’ hub in Fleetwood to provide a confidential safe space to empower and support women experiencing domestic abuse. Kiena Dawes’s mum opens Fleetwood domestic abuse victims’ hub – BBC News
- The domestic abuse commissioner, Dame Nicole Jacobs, for England and Wales, is “deeply concerned” that government plans to tackle abuse could continue to fail victims. She added that a “comprehensive strategy”, supported by more funding, is needed to improve victims’ experience of the justice system. Commissioner warns ministers over domestic abuse reforms – BBC News
- A Domestic Abuse Related Death Review(DARDR) into the death of Val (pseudonym) has been published by the Norfolk Community Safety Partnership (NCSP) to share from lessons learned – Review highlights the male experience of domestic abuse services
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- Carole Gould and Julie Devey have been honoured for their work in co-founding the group ‘Killed Women’ after their daughters, Ellie and Poppy were killed by boys they had recently ended relationships with – West mothers receive OBEs for work after their daughters’ murders – BBC News
- News and information around the Netflix programme, Adolescence, looking at misogyny and incels –
How to talk to your children about Adolescence and the manosphere
Adolesence: Teenager dissects Netflix drama with worried parents – BBC News
Adolescence: The key issues explained | Incel culture | The Mix
Parents warned of ‘sinister emojis’ used by incel teenagers in wake of Adolescence
Training or reading material/books
- Books;
- Stop blaming mothers and ignoring fathers by David Mandel
- Let’s Be Honest by MP Jess Philips
- Radio/podcast;
- Stalked – 1. The Selfie – BBC Sounds – A Podcast to victims and families of victims of stalking and harassment.
- BBC Sounds – The Documentary – Available Episodes – Claire Bolderson reports on three countries’ different and often inspiring solutions aimed at combatting domestic violence.
- In Touch – Domestic Abuse – BBC Sounds – Visually impaired people tell us about their experiences of domestic abuse.
- Business Daily – Stalkerware: Tech-enabled domestic abuse skyrocketing – BBC Sounds – What if your partner was monitoring your every move through your smartphone?
- Femicide – https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0029395
Television;
- Gabby Petitto on Netflix
- Adolescence on Netflix
Webinars
Take a look on Eventbrite and follow Safer Places for free webinars covering a variety of topics within domestic abuse.
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Please see below message from the OPCCN
Dear all,
We are pleased to announce that we have arranged our fifth DHR/DARDR Webinar to share the learnings from DHR Sofia. This will take place on the 1st of May 2025 1pm – 4pm via Microsoft Teams.
This will focus largely on learnings around working with older people experiencing domestic abuse, specialised risk assessment tools which understand the unique experiences of older people, and how we can utilise technology to enable older and vulnerable people to live a more independent life and safeguard them within their homes.
Can we please ask that you circulate this within your networks.
As a reminder, the email address you use to register must be a professional email – such as norfolk.gov.uk Any email addresses such as Gmail, Hotmail or iCloud will not be permitted into the meeting without prior agreement with the NCSP.
If you are unable to provide a professional email address, please contact isabel.allison@norfolk.police.uk directly to discuss. This will help us to ensure we are only presenting to professionals. Please ensure you read the sign up details as all our DARDR Webinars are recorded for educational purposes as part of our ongoing commitment to provide assets to partners across Norfolk.
Jobs and opportunities at NIDAS, become a volunteer
At NIDAS, we’re always looking to expand our team and welcome passionate individuals who are committed to supporting survivors of domestic abuse. Please keep an eye out for future vacancies which we will list in our monthly newsletters
Current Job Openings
There are currently no job openings being advertised
Volunteering for NIDAS
We are excited to announce that we are looking for dedicated volunteers to join our team. Volunteering with NIDAS is a great way to gain experience in the domestic abuse sector, make a positive impact in your community, and learn from a supportive and skilled team. Whether you are interested in providing administrative support or contributing to events, there are a variety of ways to get involved.
If you’re interested in volunteering with us, please contact us at admin@leewaynwa.org.uk or visit Volunteer with Leeway for more information.
How to Contribute
If you have something to share, please get in touch with us at dachampions@nidasnorfolk.co.uk. We’d love to include your news and celebrate the successes of our team. Your story might just be the encouragement someone else needs to take the next step or feel supported in their own work.
Thank you for everything you do to help survivors of domestic abuse—your efforts are truly making a difference!
