Support | How HR can help victims of domestic abuse

Recent coverage of Sally Challen has sparked increased media interest in domestic abuse.

Challen, wife to an abusive husband, made headlines after killing him in 2010. This resulted in her being jailed for almost a decade. Yet, earlier this year, Challen was freed after the judge decided that she wouldn’t face retrial.

While this was a high-profile case, Challen is just one person to have suffered at the hands of an abusive partner. The unfortunate prevalence of domestic abuse is evidenced by the stats. Domestic abuse will affect one in four women and one in six men in their lifetime.

The widespread nature of domestic abuse results in two women being murdered each week and 30 men per year, according to Living Without Abuse. Additionally, domestic abuse has more repeat victims than any other crime as research has suggested that on average there are 35 assaults before a victim calls the police.