ISSUES
: Domestic Violence
Chapter 2: Tackling domestic abuse
26
Only 4% of people using Clare’s Law
(Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme)
are men
Charity reveals significant underuse of the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme
(‘Clare’s Law’) by men.
Following Freedom of Information
requests to police forces, the
ManKind Initiative charity has
revealed that of those (22) who
could supply the data by gender,
only one in 25 (4%) of requests to
the Domestic Violence Disclosure
Scheme (Clare’s Law) were made
by men. This is despite the fact that
on average one in five (20%) victims
of domestic abuse
1
who report to
the same police forces are men,
thereby proving that they do not
believe the scheme is open to them.
The aim of the scheme (introduced
in March 2014) is to provide anyone
with a formal mechanism to make
enquiries about their partner if they
are worried that they may have been
abusive in the past.
Research by the charity shows
that between its introduction on 8
March 2014 and 5 January 2015, of
those 22 police forces who could
supply the data broken by gender,
it was only used by 64 men (4%)
and 1,547 women (96%). In five
police forces no man had used the
scheme (Staffordshire, Lincolnshire,
Cambria, Cambridgeshire and
Bedfordshire).
The charity raised concerns
2
in the
2011 government consultation that
the over-use of the term ‘Clare’s
Law’ would lead to men thinking
this scheme was not available to
them. To address this, the charity
wants local Police and Crime
Commissioners to ensure that
everyone in their area, including
domestic abuse professionals, fully
understand it is available for men
to use as much as for women. All
1 ManKind Initiative FOI responses on number of men and
women reporting to police forces between January 2012 and
June 2014:
/
male-victims-police/
2 ManKind Initiative response to government consultation
(2011)
Clares%20Law%20response%20final.pdf
publicity, information and training
about the scheme is referred to as
‘The Domestic Violence Disclosure
Scheme’, not just ‘Clare’s Law’ and
that both female and male victims
are referred to.
Ian McNicholl
3
, domestic abuse
survivor and honorary patron of
the ManKind Initiative, said:
“Had it been available to me, why
would I have taken advantage of
this scheme whilst I was been
victimised if I thought it was just
for women? It is similar to asking
pensioners, ‘Why are you not
going on a Club 18-30 Holiday?’
The clue is in the often-used title.
This life-changing legislation is
available to men right across
England and Wales and they
should be encouraged to come
forward and seek help from the
police. Don’t be like me, please
make the request to the police;
alternatively, speak to friends and
family and ask them to make the
request on your behalf.”
Mark Brooks, chairman of the
ManKind Initiative, said:
3 Ian McNicholl is a domestic abuse survivor. His partner was
sentenced to seven years in prison in 2008. Since that time, Ian
has campaigned across the UK to ensure the voices of male
victims are heard and that services are provided.
“It is great news that so many
women have used the scheme but
given that so many men are also
victims of domestic abuse as well,
it is concerning that so few are
asking for information. It is vital that
men, family members, friends and
neighbours are also aware they can
use it, as the figures clearly show
this needs to be addressed and can
be done so with better publicity.”
The Home Office reports that male
victims (29%) are nearly twice as
likely as women (17%) to not tell
anyone about partner abuse. Only
10% of male victims will tell the
police (27% women).
1 June 2015
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The above information is
reprinted with kind permission
from the ManKind Initiative.
Please visit
.
wordpress.com for further
information.
© ManKind Initiative 2016
