Women’s Aid responds to the findings for the Baird Inquiry into Greater Manchester Police
Sophie Francis-Cansfield, Head of External Affairs at Women’s Aid, comments:
“Women’s Aid are alarmed by the findings of the Baird Report and are deeply concerned about the impact these will further have on women’s trust in the police. We already know that women’s confidence in the police is at an all time low, and that many will avoid reporting abuse over fears of how they will be treated and victim-blaming.
It takes a survivor an immense amount of courage to go to the police and report their experiences, so when they do it is essential that they are treated with the respect and dignity that they deserve, instead of being treated like a criminal and retraumatised.
We welcome the Mayor of Greater Manchester accepting the report’s recommendations in full and agree with him that this is not just a local issue. Despite progress made in the development and roll out of the Domestic Abuse Matters programme, there is a lack of understanding for this form of male-violence across police forces in England. This is why Women’s Aid are calling on the new government to enhance education and training, delivered by specialist organisations like Women’s Aid, for those working in statutory services.
As the issue around the treatment of survivor of domestic abuse by police forces is a national one, we agree that these recommendations should be accepted across forces and urge the Home Secretary Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP to action these urgently.”
ENDS
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