The Swindon-based charity working to end the scourge of domestic abuse in our society has applauded Her Majesty The Queen in her dedication in tackling the issue ahead of a special documentary to be aired next week.
With the documentary detailing Her Majesty’s commitment to highlighting domestic abuse, the cause has been a long-standing issue that the Queen has worked to raise awareness of across the world. In January of this year, she visited Swindon Domestic Abuse Support Service (SWA/SDASS) and found out more about the innovative and life-saving work that was being carried out.
With the documentary highlighting the fact that 1 in 5 adults in the UK will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime, and that two women are killed every week by their partners, Interim CEO of SDASS, Kate Rowland, agrees that it is only when society acknowledges the extent and impact of domestic abuse that we can look towards a future without it.
Kate explained: “Domestic abuse extends into every aspect of our society and can affect anyone regardless of gender, age, sexuality or economic status. At the start of this year we were lucky enough to welcome Her Majesty and show her exactly what we were doing, both to support victims in our area as well as running proactive prevention programmes; which she described as “something special.” We’re very grateful to her for championing the cause across the UK and beyond.
“We need everyone to know what domestic abuse is and how to spot the signs, as emotional abuse and coercive control are just as damaging as physical abuse and can be so much harder to recognise. Through the work we do on early intervention, education and prevention we want to one day see a society without abuse.”
The documentary Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors airs on Monday 11 November at 9pm on ITV 1.
If you need advice for yourself or a friend relating to Domestic Abuse, call Swindon’s domestic abuse helpline on 01793 610610. For more information on SWA/SDASS, visit www.swadomesticabuse.co.uk