ISSUES
: Domestic Violence
Chapter 2: Tackling domestic abuse
35
Helping parents suffering at the hands of
children
L
ast year, West Midlands Police
dealt with more than 17,000
domestic abuse related crimes.
Among those who turned to the
force’s specialist Public Protection
Unit for help breaking free from
behind-closed-doors abuse was
a woman who’d been assaulted –
kicked, punched, throttled and spat
at – on an almost daily basis.
It was an awful catalogue of abuse
stretching back several years. And
even more shocking when she
disclosed the offender was not a
violent partner… but her 12-year-old
daughter.
Child-on-parent abuse was thrust into
the spotlight this summer courtesy
of a
Coronation Street
storyline in
which Leanne Battersby suffered at
the hands of her 12-year-old stepson
Simon.
What started with sullen stares
quickly escalated to unruly behaviour,
verbal abuse and, ultimately, physical
assaults … and left Leanne toying
over how to deal with the tearaway
and whether to call in outside help.
But such episodes aren’t the preserve
of soap opera fiction.
It’s estimated that one in ten parents
have experienced violent outbursts
from a child, while national helplines
are taking around 11,000 calls a
year from parents being abused and
seeking support to control children.
Last year (April ’14 to March ’15) West
Midlands Police received 460 reports
of under-18s committing domestic
offences. Of those, 194 were child-
on-parent offences, including 115
physical assaults, plus threats to kill,
criminal damage, domestic thefts and
fraud.
The youngest offender was a 12-year-
old girl from Coventry whose mum
called police to report being at
breaking point following repeated
attacks that startedwhenher daughter
was aged just eight.
She was arrested on suspicion
of assault in January this year
but, following enquiries by Public
Protection officers who are specially
trained to deal sensitively with such
cases, the woman chose not to make
a complaint and the case was filed.
The case is now managed by
children’s services; the girl is being
supported by child mental health
specialists (CAMHS) to manage anger
issues, while other children in the
family have allocated social workers.
Public Protection Inspector Sally
Simpson said: “Incidents range from
humiliating language and threats,
belittling a parent and damage to
property, to stealing from the home or
bouts of explosive violence. And the
outbursts, usually in the home, can be
sparked by the smallest of incidents.
“Around six in ten such allegations
passed to us are dropped because
the victim decides not to support a
formal prosecution. Understandably,
most are reluctant to criminalise their
own children and will exhaust all other
options to address the issue, and try to
change their child’s behaviour, before
resorting to a formal prosecution.
“They are challenging cases to
investigate … and with repeat
offenders the focus has to be on
repairing a fractured family. We have
to ask whether taking a child to court
or blighting them with a police caution
is in their best interests and will
address underlying issues. Probably
not … and if anything it can make
matters worse.”
Of the 194 under-18 child-on-parent
crime reports received by West
Midlands Police last year only 13
progressed to a formal charge, ten
teenagers were given youth cautions,
and 12 complaints were dealt with
through community resolutions.
Detective Inspector Simpson, added:
“We’ve come a long way in just a
few years because previously there
may have been a temptation to lock
a young offender in a police cell to
‘teach them a lesson’.
“We do still get parents calling us in
the hope police presence will act as
a warning shot – and in some cases
it helps – but we now have a holistic
approach that involves working with
agencies like child mental health
(CAMHS) and education providers.
Aggressive
and
conforming
behaviours are learnt so working with
partners to change mind-sets and
behaviours is essential.
“Each case is different – but if there
are genuine concerns for the parents’
safety we would intervene and remove
the child. It’s always a balancing act.”
Other recent cases dealt with by
the force’s Public Protection Units
include a Birmingham mum punched
in the face by her 15-year-old son
when she asked him to help around
the house, and a 15-year-old from
Wolverhampton who hurled an
ashtray through a TV screen during an
argument.
Neither parent wanted police to
pursue a criminal investigation – but DI
Simpson said it’s important domestic
abuse sufferers contact police for
support and guidance rather than
suffer in silence.
She added: “Statistics show we’ve
recorded almost 200 under-18 child-
on-parent domestic crimes in 12
months … but I don’t think there’s any
doubt it’s an under-reported offence
and I suspect the actual figure is
much higher.
“Survivors tell us they’d been
reluctant to contact police out of
embarrassment, a feeling it would
be admitting failing as a parent, or a
general unconditional love for their
children. And sometimes there may
be autism or other behavioural issues
triggering outbursts that need to be
taken into account.
“Another question parents are left
asking themselves is how much
rebelliousness they are expected
to take as part of the growing-up
process. This is purely subjective – but
if lashing out at parental restrictions, or
losing sight of boundaries, manifests
itself in repeated aggression then I’d
encourage parents to contact us.
