New advice line for South Yorkshire employers to help staff escape abusive homes
It's after we revealed a big rise in incidents during the pandemic
There are fresh efforts to help South Yorkshire bosses offer a way out for staff who are trapped at home with an abuser.
Our On The Inside investigation revealed a rise of more than a thousand police incidents in South Yorkshire fduring lockdown, with many abuse victims left with nowhere to turn.
Now a new helpline's been set up to help employers know what to do if they become aware employees are going through it at home.
It's been set up by the charity Hestia.
Its Head of Domestic Abuse Prevention Lyndsey Dearlove tell us with many people working from home, it's more important now than ever to provide the support:
"Going to work for many people who were enduring domestic abuse used to be an opportunity to access help or support, be a rest-bite from what they were experiencing at home.
"Those that abuse are using even more opportunities to be aware of every conversation their victim is have so in most cases the only safe communication channel is with your employer.
"If you are enduring domestic abuse, the number one objective for your perpetrator is to isolate you so beingable to increase those opportunities to talk to people is really important.
"And if you're stuck at home, and you're working at home, the person that you may speak to regularly is your line manager."
The new helpline is a national initiative by the charity, as part of its Everyone's Business programme to increase domestic abuse awareness and support in the workplace.
Lyndsey says bosses have a responsibility to signpot help:
"If we can increase those opportunities to specialist support services, so increasing that pathway, it can be absolutely life-changing and life-saving.
"We spend 70% of our life at work and actually being able to access those support services, and that can be as simple as going on your intranet page and knowing that this is the telephone number to the national helpline,
"Those things are really small and really easy to achieve by an employer but are absolutely crucial."
Our #OnTheInside investigation explored the rising problem of domestic abuse during the pandemic, we found a big rise in police incidents and that refuges in Sheffield were almost full at the height of lockdown.
You can catch up on our week of special reports on the issue here.