Peterborough charity expecting surge in domestic abuse this winter
New figures show 5% of adults have experienced domestic abuse in the past year
Domestic abuse charities in Peterborough tell us they're preparing for an increase in calls as we head into the winter period.
New figures released by the Office for National Statistics show 5% of adults have experienced domestic abuse in the past year.
Peterborough Women's Aid says it's expecting a rise in calls from domestic abuse victims in January.
The CEO, Mandy Geraghty, said although Christmas can be an extremely difficult time for victims of domestic abuse, it's important that awareness is raised all year round:
'We do find a lot of victims in a relationship might feel that they will stay in that relationship for the Christmas period, because they don't want to disrupt family life because they have children," she said.
"We do tend to find our referrals do go up in January when people have made that decision to leave that abusive relationship."
White Ribbon Day aims to raise awareness of domestic violence
Cambridgeshire Police is one organisation in the county that's marking White Ribbon Day today.
The event, organised by the White Ribbon charity, begins 16 days of action that encourages people to show their support towards ending violence against women and girls.
Figures from police found in the past 10 months, the force has recorded almost 8,500 domestic abuse incidents in Cambridgeshire, down by 12 per cent from the year before with 73 per cent of victims being female.
To mark the campaign, the force, will share stories of those who have lived through domestic abuse.
The East Cambs Community Safety Partnership is also asking members of the public to take photos of themselves with their phone torches on and post on social media using the hashtag #ChangeTheStory.
Meanwhile the Octagon Tower at Ely Cathedral will be lit up white during the evening.
The partnership found in East Cambridgeshire last year, there were 958 domestic abuse incidents, the majority of which were against women and girls.
Of these, 553 resulted in a crime being committed.
"Domestic abuse happens all year"
"We have to be really cautious with campaigns that say domestic abuse gets worse at Christmas. Like with other campaigns that said domestic abuse gets worse during the World Cup," Ms Geraghty said.
"From our point of view, domestic abuse happens all year and to say it happens at certain times is wrong and it minimises the perpetrator's actions.
"We've had a lot of people say it's worse at Christmas because there's a lot of drink involved. That is wrong, because it's blaming alcohol for the actions of the perpetrator.
"Christmas is a risky time, yes, but it's 12 months of the year when domestic abuse happens."