Introduction
Domestic abuse is defined as any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive, threatening, degrading, or violent behaviour, including sexual violence, in the majority of cases by a partner or ex-partner, but also by a family member or carer.
Understanding domestic abuse statistics is essential. They provide insight into the scale and nature of abuse, help shape support services, inform prevention efforts, and ultimately improve outcomes for survivors. But behind every number is a person who deserves safety and justice.
How Are Domestic Abuse Statistics Captured in the UK?
Domestic abuse statistics in the UK are collected through a combination of government surveys, police data, healthcare reporting, and insights from frontline support organisations. Together, these data sources help build a comprehensive picture of prevalence, risk, and service needs.
Key Sources:
Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles official domestic abuse data using:
- The Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) – the most reliable source of self-reported victimisation. It includes incidents not reported to police, making it essential for understanding the true scale of abuse.
- Police-recorded crime – captures only cases reported to and logged by law enforcement. While it reflects trends in reporting, it underrepresents the actual number of cases.
- NHS Digital – provides statistics on physical injuries, mental health impacts, and safeguarding referrals linked to domestic abuse. Healthcare settings often identify abuse not disclosed to police.
- SafeLives – a UK-wide domestic abuse charity that gathers anonymised data from frontline services including Independent Domestic Violence Advisors (IDVAs), Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conferences (MARACs), and high-risk survivor reports.
- Women’s Aid – provides national insight based on data from women’s refuges and outreach services, offering evidence on support access, funding gaps, and gendered experiences of abuse.
- Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s Office (DAC) – provides system-level insights through survivor journey mapping, service gap reports, and contextual analysis. While the DAC does not produce prevalence statistics, it offers evidence to inform national data and improve criminal justice responses.
Limitations: Despite the breadth of these data sources, domestic abuse remains significantly underreported. Many victims fear retaliation or may not even identify their experience as abuse, especially in cases of coercive control, emotional abuse, or financial manipulation, which can be harder to define and prove. Language barriers, disability, and immigration status can also affect reporting rates.
As highlighted by the End Violence Against Women Coalition, recent crime data from the Office for National Statistics continues to miss the full spectrum of abuse that women and girls experience particularly non-physical forms of harm such as threats, online abuse, stalking, and control (EVAW, 2024). This makes survivor-centered, accessible support more important than ever.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, whether it involves physical violence, controlling behaviour, emotional manipulation, or financial coercion, you are not alone, and help is available. Many people hesitate to report abuse because they don’t know where to turn for help or what legal protection is available. The Domestic Abuse Alliance works to provide fast, free access to legal support through referrals made via our WEPROTECT service. WEPROTECT is a secure referral app used by police and frontline professionals to connect victims with specialist legal assistance. This includes assistance with applying for non-molestation orders, occupation orders, and Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPOs). Legal Aid or pro bono support is also available for those who are eligible or unable to afford legal representation. Whether you’re seeking help for yourself or someone else, Domestic Abuse (DA) Alliance can guide you through your options.
Latest National Domestic Abuse Statistics (General Overview)
- An estimated 2.3 million adults aged 16 and over experienced domestic abuse in England and Wales in the year ending March 2024, including 1.6 million women and 712,000 men (ONS, 2024).
- Police recorded 851,062 domestic abuse-related crimes during this period. There was no statistically significant change in the prevalence of domestic abuse compared with the previous year (ONS, 2024).
- Domestic abuse-related crimes made up 15.8% of all crimes recorded by the police (ONS, 2024).
- Women continue to be significantly more likely to experience repeated, prolonged, and severe abuse, including coercive control and sexual violence (ONS, 2024; SafeLives, 2021).
- Non-physical abuse, such as emotional manipulation, psychological harm, and coercive control, continues to be among the most commonly reported experiences, followed by physical assault and financial control (SafeLives, 2019; ONS, 2024).
Domestic Abuse Across Demographics
Mental Health and Domestic Abuse
The link between domestic abuse and mental health is well established:
- 42% of victims experience mental health issues including depression, anxiety, and PTSD (SafeLives, 2016).
- Survivors of IPV with physical abuse are significantly more likely to suffer from traumatic brain injury and long-term mental health issues, such as PTSD, depression, and sleep disorders (Jenkins et al., 2025).
- The study found that even 27 years after exposure, women exposed to IPV-PA continued to face heightened risks of mental illness (Jenkins et al., 2025).
- Domestic abuse survivors are three times more likely to experience mental health conditions (NHS Digital, 2022).
- Domestic abuse should be considered a public health issue due to its lifelong effects on brain health (The Guardian, 2025).
The Domestic Abuse Alliance supports early legal intervention, which can play a vital role in reducing the long-term mental health burden experienced by survivors. Domestic Abuse (DA) Alliance’s referral app, WEPROTECT, was designed to help police and frontline professionals connect victims with legal support faster and has undergone a 30-month independent evaluation by the University of Birmingham to assess its impact, including on mental health outcomes.
Domestic Abuse During Pregnancy
The statistics surrounding domestic abuse during pregnancy are stark as, sadly, this is a key moment when abuse can begin or escalate.
- Around 30% of DA cases begin during pregnancy (SafeLives).
- Abuse during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage, premature birth, and postpartum depression (SafeLives, 2019).
- Exposure to domestic abuse from conception to age two can physically alter a baby’s brain chemistry and negatively affect cognitive, emotional, and physical development (The For Baby’s Sake Trust).
- 40% of parents who experienced domestic abuse during pregnancy or the first two years of their child’s life did not feel able to seek professional help at the time, while 33% said they didn’t know where to begin to look for support (The For Baby’s Sake Trust).
- At least 48,067 babies and toddlers (aged 0–2) are referred to children’s social care each year with domestic abuse as a contributing factor, and 1 in 4 babies entering care annually in England (1,924 out of 7,826) do so due to domestic abuse (The For Baby’s Sake Trust, 2025).
- 1 in 4 women will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime (Office for National Statistics, 2023).
The Domestic Abuse (DA) Alliance helps accelerate access to legal protection for pregnant victims, reducing delays that could otherwise increase the risk of harm to both mothers and their unborn child/ren.
As part of our wider commitment to early intervention, we’ve joined forces with Domestic Abuse Education and The HR Dept. to launch Protecting Every Future, a new guide to help employers identify and support employees who may be experiencing domestic abuse during pregnancy.
We’ve also co-signed a public letter to policymakers and government officials, urging stronger workplace protections and access to support for pregnant employees facing abuse.
The impact of domestic abuse is not only devastating to individuals and families, but also to society. The total cost of domestic abuse is estimated at £85 billion annually (Domestic Abuse Commissioner, 2024), including £14 billion in lost productivity and time off work (Home Office, 2019).
Domestic Abuse and Disability
Disabled individuals are more likely to experience domestic abuse and face additional barriers in accessing help:
- Disabled women are twice as likely to experience domestic abuse than non-disabled women (ONS, 2020).
- Many disabled survivors face additional barriers, including dependence on abusers for care, lack of accessible services, and social isolation.
If you need language support, the Domestic Abuse Alliance offers access to interpreters in over 200 languages through its WETRANSLATE, making legal help more accessible for survivors who face communication challenges.
Domestic Abuse in Later Life
While often overlooked, older adults experience abuse too:
- One in six people aged 60+ experience domestic abuse, often by partners or adult children (Age UK, 2020).
Abuse in later life is often underreported, misidentified as elder neglect or health decline. Isolation, dependence on the abuser, and societal ageism make support harder to access.
Domestic Abuse, Suicide and Self-Harm
Domestic abuse is a major factor in suicide risk, especially among women:
- Over 50% of women who die by suicide have experienced domestic abuse at some point in their lives (Agenda Alliance, 2022).
- Survivors are at increased risk of self-harm, suicidal thoughts, and suicide attempts, especially when coercive control or prolonged abuse is involved.
Early trauma-informed intervention, including legal protection, is critical to reducing suicide risk.
What These Statistics Mean
These statistics reveal more than just the scale of domestic abuse; they expose the deep systemic barriers many survivors face when seeking help, from underreporting and fear of judgment to gaps in service access and delays in legal protection.
Each data point represents a real person navigating fear, isolation, and trauma. By understanding the patterns behind the numbers, we can create more inclusive, responsive support systems and drive meaningful change.
At the Domestic Abuse Alliance, we use these insights to act. Our WEPROTECT service accelerates access to legal protection, reducing referral times from weeks to hours.
These figures highlight the urgent need for:
- Early legal intervention to prevent risk escalation.
- Accessible, trauma-informed support for high-risk groups including pregnant women, disabled people, older adults, and those with mental health conditions.
- Better integration of data and services across healthcare, policing, and community networks.
To learn more about how we’re driving change and how to access support, visit domestic-abuse.co.uk
