What is Domestic Abuse

The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 defines domestic abuse as the behaviour of a person (A) towards another person (B) who is 16 years old or over and are “personally connected” to each other, and the behaviour is abusive.

Behaviour is abusive if it consists of any of the following:

• physical or sexual abuse
• violent or threatening behaviour
• controlling or coercive behaviour
• economic abuse
• psychological, emotional or other abuse

It doesn't matter if the behaviour consists of a single incident or a pattern of behaviour.

Economic abuse means any behaviour that has a substantial adverse effect on someone's ability to acquire, use or maintain money or other property, or obtain goods or services.                                                                                                                                                                   

The term 'personally connected' applies if:

• they are, or have been, married to each other
• they are, or have been, civil partners of each other
• they have agreed to marry one another (whether or not the agreement has been terminated)
• they have entered into a civil partnership agreement (whether or not the agreement has been terminated)
• they are, or have been, in an intimate personal relationship with each other
• they each have, or there has been a time when they each have had, a parental relationship in relation to the same child*
• they are relatives

*This refers to a person who has a parental relationship in relation to a child if:

• the person is a parent of the child
• the person has parental responsibility for the child                                                                                                                                               

A child is defined as a person under the age of 18 years; children as victims of domestic abuse within this section applies where behaviour of a person (“A”) towards another person (“B”) is domestic abuse. Any reference in the Act to a victim of domestic abuse includes a reference to a child who:

• sees or hears, or experiences the effect of, the abuse
• is related to A or B                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

For more details on the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, visit Domestic Abuse Act 2021 - GOV.UK.

If you have concerns that you may be experiencing domestic abuse, please watch the videos below.

Anyone can be a victim regardless of age, gender, ethnicity or sexual orientation.

Coercive and controlling behaviour appears in all domestic abusive relationships to some degree. The video below shows some examples.

There are many myths around what abuse is and why it happens. You can find an overview of these common misconceptions on this video.

If you feel you may be experiencing domestic abuse, please note it is never your fault. The person who is abusive is solely responsible for their actions.

If you relate to anything you have seen on this page please seek support.

If you are worried about your immediate safety please ring the police on 999.

To find out more about what domestic abuse is, listen to the Crime Analyst podcast.

See our red flags leaflet for information about early warning signs of domestic abuse.