'Hidden' abuse reporting up by a third

Cases of 'hidden' abuse, including coercive control, have risen according to Citizens Advice Guernsey

"Hidden" abuse cases reported to a citizen's advice charity in Guernsey have overtaken incidences of physical abuse.

Citizens Advice Guernsey (CAG) said there had been a "noticeable increase" in non-physical abuse, which includes psychological or emotional, coercive control or financial abuse.

A report found it accounted for 63% of cases reported to its staff in 2023, up from 30% in 2022, while physical, harassment or sexual abuse made up 37% of cases last year.

In July 2023, new laws were proposed to "criminalise all forms of domestic abuse", including coercive and controlling behaviour, to be incorporated into existing domestic abuse legislation.

The number of cases of psychological and emotional abuse reported to CAG was higher in 2023 than in 2022

The CAG report said: "Although caution must be used in interpreting changes given the relatively small number of cases, it suggests that there is growing recognition and reporting of non-physical types of abuse."

In the 12 months to December 2023, CAG had 59 approaches from people requesting help with "problems where domestic abuse was a significant issue".

The charity analysed the cases and found 62 victims were identified, 48 (77%) of whom were females and 14 (23%) males.

The number of children was not recorded.

The report continued: "The evidence shows that incidents of physical and mental domestic abuse remain at a high level, with women being particularly impacted.

"Domestic abuse is costly in human and financial terms.

"It is one of the top two reasons for children being put on the child protection register and costs to the public purse are also high."

In the 59 abuse cases examined, 62 victims were identified - 48 (77%) were females and 14 (23%) were males

It said the figure for male domestic abuse was higher in England.

"It is likely that many people are reluctant to contact us or the police, but the domestic abuse of males may be particularly under-reported in Guernsey," it said.

Domestic abuse is defined as “any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those who are or have been intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality”.

In September 2022 “The Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence Strategy for Guernsey and Alderney 2022-2025” was adopted.

It sets out a plan to deliver services aimed at "addressing and reducing domestic and sexual violence".

CAG said this would "take some time" to implement but a six-monthly monitoring system and annual reports should mean its effectiveness would be "apparent".