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The DA Alliance brings together organisations working on the frontline of domestic abuse across the UK with the legal sector to deliver joined-up instant legal assistance and protection for victims.

05/06/2026

Building a Trauma-Informed Service Response

This week, members of our frontline team took part in a trauma-informed training session delivered by Dr Robert Davies from the University of York.

The session explored different types of trauma and their impact on victim-survivors of domestic abuse, including the diagnostic criteria for PTSD, the risks of re-traumatisation, and practical ways professionals can reduce the likelihood of causing further distress during their interactions with victims.

For those working directly with victim-survivors every day, understanding how trauma can shape memory, communication, and behaviour is essential. The training encouraged us to reflect on how we engage with victims, the way we frame questions, and how we can continue to develop a more trauma-informed approach across our services.

By improving our understanding of trauma, we can better support victim-survivors while helping to ensure they feel heard, understood, and safe throughout their journey.

For our team, recognising and effectively managing the impacts of vicarious trauma is also essential - to safeguard their own wellbeing, maintain personal and professional resilience, and ensure they can continue to provide compassionate, high-quality support to survivors.

Thank you to Dr Davies for delivering such an insightful and thought-provoking session.

04/06/2026

⚽ As excitement builds around the World Cup, it is important to remember that major football tournaments can also be a difficult and dangerous time for some people experiencing domestic abuse.

Research from Lancaster University found that domestic abuse incidents increased by 38% when England lost a match and by 26% when they won or drew.

While football itself does not cause domestic abuse, factors such as alcohol consumption, gambling, and existing patterns of abusive behaviour can contribute to an increase in incidents during major sporting events.

Thank you to SETDAB (Southend, Essex and Thurrock Domestic Abuse Board), The Next Chapter, and partners across Essex for developing resources that help raise awareness of this issue and encourage more people to recognise the signs of abuse and know where to seek support.

Awareness can help save lives. If you are concerned about someone, trust your instincts, start a conversation, and help signpost them to appropriate support.

Find out more and access SETDAB’s campaign resources here: https://setdab.org/resource/setdab-world-cup-communications-2026/

02/06/2026

📱 Older adults can face unique risks when technology is misused as a tool for coercion, surveillance, financial abuse, and control within domestic abuse situations.

Joining SETDAB’s lecture series, Dewis Choice will explore how practitioners can better recognise and respond to technology-facilitated domestic abuse affecting older victim-survivors.

This online session, hosted over MS Teams, will cover:

• Recognising hidden signs of tech-facilitated abuse in later life
• Understanding digital coercive control and financial exploitation
• Strengthening safeguarding responses and professional curiosity
• Supporting digital safety and safety planning for older victims

As technology becomes increasingly embedded in everyday life, improving awareness of these forms of abuse is vital to ensuring older victim-survivors are not overlooked or isolated from support.

🔗 Find out more and register here: https://setdab.org/training/setdab-lecture-series-supporting-older-victims-of-technology-facilitated-domestic-abuse-delivered-by-dewis-choice/

📅 Wednesday 10 June 2026, 9:30am – 11:30am

01/06/2026

Over 105,000 children across the UK are currently living in homes where there is a high risk of domestic abuse.

A recent article by Tes highlights the importance of helping schools and education professionals recognise the signs that a child may be affected by abuse – whether through witnessing abuse at home or experiencing abuse within their own relationships.

The article outlines how signs can vary depending on age, but may include anxiety, aggression, withdrawal, poor attendance, low self-esteem, self-harm, or sudden behavioural changes. It also highlights that children who see or hear domestic abuse are now recognised as victims in their own right, under the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.

For many children, school may be one of the few places where changes in behaviour are noticed and support can begin. This makes safeguarding awareness, early intervention, and trauma-informed responses especially important within education settings.

Early identification and strong collaboration between schools, frontline services, and support organisations can play a vital role in helping children and young people affected by abuse access support earlier and feel safer.

Read the full article here: https://www.tes.com/en-gb/for-schools/blog/article/signs-domestic-abuse-children-safeguarding-against-domestic-abuse-schools

29/05/2026

⚽ The World Cup brings people together - but creating spaces where everyone feels safe, respected and welcome takes all of us.

White Ribbon UK’s upcoming free webinar, Watching the Game, Playing Your Part, will explore how everyday comments, “banter”, and behaviours around football can sometimes cross the line - and what we can all do to help create a better culture during the game.

The session will share practical ways to speak up, support others, and challenge harmful behaviour in everyday situations.

🔗 Register for the White Ribbon UK webinar here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/white-ribbon-uk-webinar-watching-the-game-playing-your-part-tickets-1989097421934

📅 Monday 1 June 2026 at 7 pm

As we look ahead to White Ribbon Day (WRD) 2026, we’re preparing to launch our new “Together, we mend” community campaign in partnership with artist and VAWG campaigner Holly R., inspired by this year’s WRD theme: “It Takes All of Us.” We’ll be sharing more details about the campaign and how you can get involved soon 👀

27/05/2026

A new research project, supported through the Police STAR Fund, will review 10 years of data to explore how abuse manifests in teenage relationships and help develop a new risk assessment framework for safeguarding agencies across the UK.

Currently, children under 16 in peer relationships are not legally recognised as victims of domestic abuse, meaning many cases may remain hidden and unsupported.

The research will be co-led by Deputy Chief Constable Katy Barrow-Grint from Gloucestershire Constabulary and Dr Ruth Weir from City St George’s, University of London, alongside domestic abuse charity SafeLives. Academic partners also include the University of Essex and the University of Cambridge.

The project aims to improve how agencies identify risk, respond earlier, and better safeguard young people experiencing harm in relationships.

Early intervention and improving understanding and education around abuse in teenage relationships is vital to help prevent harm – before it escalates. Under-18s are eligible applicants in their own right for civil protection orders, in cases of abuse and harassment.

Read more here: https://www.gloucestershire.police.uk/news/gloucestershire/2026/may/funding-secured-to-better-understand-the-scale-of-teenage-relationship-abuse/

26/05/2026

A new report from Scottish Women’s Aid has highlighted the devastating impact of “coerced debt” - a form of economic abuse where perpetrators take out debt in a victim’s name through manipulation, threats, or coercion.

The report found that some women experiencing domestic abuse were being pushed towards illegal money lenders and loan sharks due to the financial pressure created by abusive partners. Survivors described being forced into impossible choices, including going without essentials, taking on further debt, selling possessions, or even returning to abusive relationships to survive.

Dr Jenn Glinski, Scottish Women’s Aid’s national policy lead for economic abuse, described coerced debt as a “hidden but widespread form of economic abuse” used to trap women and children and restrict their ability to leave safely.

The report also highlights the urgent need for systemic change, including greater recognition of economic abuse, survivor-centred debt relief, and stronger support systems that prevent survivors from carrying the financial burden of abuse alone.

Here at Domestic Abuse Alliance, we recognise that domestic abuse is not only physical. Many of the victim-survivors that we support disclose multiple forms of abuse – including economic abuse and coercive control, which can have long-lasting impacts on safety, independence, and wellbeing. Access to early legal support and protection can play a vital role in helping survivors regain control and start to feel safe again.

Read more from Sky News:
https://news.sky.com/story/women-turning-to-loan-sharks-due-to-debt-racked-up-by-abusive-partners-13543454

22/05/2026

New measures introduced by Nationwide UK highlight how domestic abuse can extend into everyday financial systems - including the use of payment references to maintain harassment, intimidation and control.

Nationwide customers can now choose to hide harmful payment references within the banking app, helping survivors regain greater control over what they see and experience when managing their finances. The feature was developed alongside survivors and in partnership with charity Surviving Economic Abuse - SEA.

Kathryn Townsend, Head of Customer Vulnerability at Nationwide, said: “Domestic abuse doesn’t stop and start at physical harm, it can reach into everyday systems, including banking.”

According to Surviving Economic Abuse, around 4.2 million women across the UK have experienced economic abuse by a current or former partner. Economic abuse can include controlling someone’s access to money, bank accounts, spending, employment, or financial independence, and it often occurs alongside other forms of abuse.

Sam Smethers, CEO of Surviving Economic Abuse, also highlighted how everyday banking tools can be exploited by perpetrators to continue harassment and coercive control after separation.

Alongside this new feature, Nationwide has also expanded its specialist support services, including “safe spaces” across branches where people experiencing domestic abuse can access support safely and confidentially.

Initiatives like this are an important reminder that improving safety for survivors also means recognising how abuse can continue through digital tools, financial systems and everyday interactions – often long after separation.

Read more here: https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/nationwide-gives-abuse-survivors-ability-230100372.html

20/05/2026

A new online space has launched to support deaf children and young people to access health and wellbeing information in an inclusive environment, created with the deaf community in mind.

The deaf health charity SignHealth has launched Deaf Wave, a new platform designed to help deaf children and young people access information, advice, stories and support in both BSL and English.

The site covers a range of important topics including mental health, relationships, healthcare rights, wellbeing, school stress, and sexual health – helping young people to access information without communication barriers.

What makes Deaf Wave particularly powerful is that deaf young people themselves helped shape the platform alongside students, BSL translators, and graphic designers, ensuring the content is relatable and community-led.

Accessible information and early support can play an important role in helping young people feel informed, confident, and safe. Creating inclusive spaces where children and young people can seek guidance without barriers is an important step towards strengthening wellbeing and support for all.

Find out more: https://deafwave.signhealth.org.uk

18/05/2026

A new report by the Social Insights Panel, part of the Future Governance Forum, “Six ways to move the dial on prevention”, highlights an important truth about prevention: informal support often starts long before formal intervention.

The report argues that prevention depends on the strength and resilience of community support networks, many of which don’t resemble traditional public services. Sometimes, these networks look like an informal shared meal where women feel safe enough to talk about the earliest signs of domestic abuse. Sometimes, they are the relationships and sense of belonging built through community groups and local spaces.

The report describes these connections as sitting at the outer edges of a wider “web of support” - helping people access guidance, safety and confidence before situations escalate into crisis.

The six mindset shifts outlined in the report include:
• prioritising relationships and belonging
• focusing on people’s needs rather than institutional risk
• strengthening support from frontline practitioners
• supporting community-based innovation
• rebuilding trust with local organisations

For those experiencing domestic abuse, trusted relationships and early support can make a life-changing difference.

At Domestic Abuse Alliance, we believe prevention is strengthened through partnership, early intervention and accessible pathways to specialist legal support and protection – which lie at the heart of our Protective Order Support Service.

Read the report here: https://www.futuregovernanceforum.co.uk/resource/six-ways-to-move-the-dial-on-prevention/

Find out more about WEPROTECT here: https://domestic-abuse.co.uk/weprotect/

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+448001017110

Website

http://www.domestic-abuse.co.uk/

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