Ireland

• The refuge in Ballymena has accomodated 324 women and 407 children since opening in November 1998
• 29% of murders in Northern Ireland involved domestic situations (PSNI) Statistics).
  A national survey in the Republic of Ireland found that 59% of women surveyed know a woman whose partner used violence against her.).
• One women is seriously assaulted (ABH, GBH, attempted murder) by her male partner every day in Northern Ireland (PSNI) Statistics).
• Since 1978 over 30,000 women and children have been accommodated in Women's Aid refuges in Northern Ireland (NIWAF Statistics).
• Women's Aid have provided information, support and advice to over 90,000 people since  1978 (NIWAF Statistics).

General

• Almost half (44%) of all incidents reported by women to the British Crime Survey were domestic violence incidents. (British Crime Survey 1996, Home Office).
• Since 1981, the largest increase in violent crimes has been in incidents of domestic violence (British Crime Survey 1996, Home Office).
• A number of local surveys in the UK show between 1 in 3 and 1 in 4 women report having suffered domestic violence at some time in their adult lives. ).
• Similar findings are reported from research overseas. For example the largest recent survey of violence against women involved a telephone survey of over 11,000 women in Canada. One in three reported violence from their partners (Statistics Canada (1996) Survey on Violence Against Women in Canada).
• A survey of 1000 women in city centres in North England found that 1 in 8 women reported having been raped by their husbands or partners (Painter, K. (1991) Wife Rape and The Law Survey Report: Key Findings And Recommendations, Department of Social Policy & Social Work, University of Manchester).
• Each year, 45% of female homicide victims are killed by present or former male partners compared to 8% of male victims. On average, 2 women per week are killed in England and Wales by their partners/ex-partners (Criminal Statistics (1992) Home Office)
• 60% of 127 women resident in refuges in Northern Ireland experienced violence during pregnancy. 13% lost their babies as a result (Monica McWilliams & Joan McKiernan (1993) Bringing it out into the open, Belfast HMSO).
• Domestic violence often continues and may escalate in severity after separation. As many as one-third of women who leave refuges experience continued abuse and harassment from their ex-partners (Binney, Harkell & Nixon, (1988) Leaving Violent Men, Bristol: WAFE).
• Women are at greatest risk of homicide at the point of separation or after leaving a violent partner (Daly & Wilson (1988) Homicide, Aldane Gruyter).
• Domestic violence is the least likely violent crime to be reported to the police. Only one out of three crimes resulting in injury are reported (British Crime Survey, 1996).
• Women who suffer domestic violence are likely to under report incidents of abuse. In a study of 484 women's experiences of violence in Surrey, 2 out of 3 women who defined themselves as victims of domestic violence said they had not told family, friends or agencies about the abuse. (Dominy & Radford (1996) Domestic Violence in Surrey, Surrey Social Services/ Roehampton Institute).Domestic violence has a major impact upon the health and welfare of women and children world-wide. The 1995 World Development Report by the United Nations shows, that on a world scale, it is a significant cause of disability and death (Social Services Inspectorate (1996) Domestic Violence and Social Care).
• On average a women is assaulted 35 times before seeking help from outside agencies.
• There are 530,000 assaults on women by men in the home each year.
• 5% of health years of life are lost world-wide by women because of domestic violence (Social Services Inspectorate, 1996). 
• Domestic violence is a factor in 1 in 4 suicide attempts by women (Stark, E. Flitcraft, A. & Frazier, W. (1979) Medicine And Patriarchal Violence: The Social Construction of A 'Private' Event, International Journal of Health Services, 9 (3) pp. 461-93).
   

Children & Domestic Violence

• In 90% of cases of domestic violence children are in the same room or the next room.(Hughes 1998)
• 66% of residents in emergency refuges are children.(Women's Aid)
• In 40% - 60% of cases of domestic violence child abuse is also occurring ( Stark & Flitcraft 1998)
• The NCH study found 75% of mothers said their children had witnessed domestic violence, 33% had seen their mothers beaten up, 10% had witnessed sexual violence (NCH, 1994).
• Children's responses to witnessing domestic violence vary according to a multitude of factors, including age, race, class, sex, stage of development, role in the family, relationship with parent(s), and the availability of sources of support outside the immediate family situation (Saunders, 1995).
• Children of all ages most often take some form of passive or active support to protect their mothers when witnessing domestic violence (Hester & Radford, 1996).
• Children of all ages phone the police for assistance and a number of research studies suggest that women often attribute their eventual escape to the emotional and practical support provided by their children (Hoff, 1990). 
• Children sometimes feel guilty if they do not come to the aid of their mother. This 'guilt' is often accompanied by self blame and feelings that they have in some way 'caused' their father to be violent (Saunders, 1995).
• Children may also feel angry towards their mother for not protecting herself or the children, as well as blaming her for causing the violence. Others may be so concerned about their mother's distress that they keep private their own grief (Saunders, 1995).