A former domestic abuse victim and an outreach worker from the Broxtowe Women’s Project believe the cost of living crisis is “catastrophic” for those in abusive relationships. They say less money means less freedom and a higher likelihood of people not being able to get away.
The Broxtowe Women’s Project is a non-project charity based in Eastwood. It has two main services: the adult outreach and the children’s outreach.
A former domestic abuse survivor who wants to remain anonymous suffered abuse throughout the early 90s. She spoke to Nottinghamshire Live about how financial abuse can affect people and how the cost of living crisis will impact people in terms of abuse.
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She said: “It’s just you become so dependent on that abuser, everything is stripped back. You always think, ‘how do I get out of this?’
“For me, I left with clothes in my bag one night. My mother was abused by my father but we didn’t know to what extent because we had the big house etc and when she died, she had £45 in her savings but my father had thousands - a lot of that was her money."
Financial abuse has been identified as a frequent factor used by many abusers. It is said to affect 8.7 million people across the UK.
The former domestic abuse survivor continued: “Domestic abuse can happen to anybody, there’s always someone pulling the strings. There’s no independence, a lack of financial means a lack of independence. I had a driver's licence but no use of my car which meant that I couldn’t work.
“You’re isolated from friends and family. Financial abuse means that you sometimes don’t eat and you can’t pay your bills. You can feel guilty of having too much or too little. I’ve made a nice life for myself now but I still have to constantly remind myself that I am in a better place.
“In a domestic abusive relationship, there’s no kindness, even when it comes to things like gift giving for other people’s birthdays, there’s none of that, the lifestyle is completely different, the other person is in control."
Some of the most common signs of domestic abuse include: restriction of income, misuse of joint or personal funds, controlling spending and incurring debts without consent or under duress.
Sandra Reddish, one of the outreach workers has spoken out about what the cost of living will mean for domestic abuse victims. She said: “When the cost of living goes up and there’s an insufficient amount of money, it can put people on edge, that can put immense pressure on people.
“A lot of the women we support rely on food banks and charity shops because they’re being financially abused and intense poverty can rise. 25% of all domestic abuse survivors are in debt of over £5,000.
“With domestic abuse victims there’s always a financial aspect, it’s about power and money. It spans across all social classes. Women with a big house and cars in the driveway, others think they’re immune from poverty but I’ve supported women who others may think are wealthy but they’re accessing food banks.
“Women are sometimes not allowed to work because when they’re not working, they’re easier to control. The cost of living crisis is going to make things worse.”
Sandra mentioned that when the Universal Credit uplift was removed, £20 a week which totalled to £80 a month was a big difference for those in domestic abusive relationships. Now, people have a new struggle.
Sandra said: “Food, gas and electricity is going up which isn’t manageable for a lot of women, it means that women have fewer options to leave, money allows freedom and options but without money, that’s going to be difficult.
“The cost of living can also affect children; when they’re raised in a domestic abusive household, they’re more likely to have poor outcomes in life in terms of behaviour for example. It’s a catastrophic situation, we’ve not seen this cost of living crisis in a long time.”
With prices that have soared, the charity is scared that people may not be able to donate as much. Sandra said: “We as a charity rely on charity and a lot of the times, people do step up and give more in challenging times but will people now be able to afford to give or give the same amount?
“Abusive men keep the money to themselves, they choose to sort out their own needs and financial stresses. A lot more needs doing. If the government puts more money into dealing with this fallout it will save more people and put less pressure on different services. The government needs to help and put whatever resources in, it shouldn’t just be left to different charities."
Lear Corporations are one of the companies that support BWP. Over the bank holiday weekend in May, they supported the charity with food donations.
The company had come up with an initiative called GROW.
A spokesperson for Lear Alfreton said: “Lear Alfreton are delighted to be able to support the amazing work that BWP do for local women. We are always keen to choose causes where we can make a difference on an individual level and so it’s great to know our fresh food donation helped to take a bit of pressure off families this bank holiday.
“GROW aims to empower women within our workplace, but we’re also passionate about using our employee network to empower those within our community.”
If you are in immediate danger, call 999 and ask for the police. If you can’t speak and are calling on a mobile press 55 to have your call transferred to the police.
The domestic abuse helpline for BWP can be found on: 01773 719111 which operates from 9am-5pm Monday-Friday
