Domestic abuse made up one in five crimes during first lockdown

DOMESTIC abuse made up one in five crimes nationally during the first lockdown, with Leicestershire seeing an average of nine arrests a day during the period.

Figures published on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women show police in England and Wales recorded 198,112 domestic abuse-related crimes between April and June this year.

The number - which represents one in five of all crimes - recorded in the period covered by the first lockdown was up from 182,562 in the same three months in 2019.

While recorded crime figures for individual police forces aren’t yet available, other figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) give some scale of the local response to domestic abuse during that period.

Across Leicestershire, 828 arrests for domestic abuse-related crimes were made between April and June this year. During the first lockdown, there were also 1,284 child protection referrals for domestic abuse-related incidents and crimes.

The family courts were also busy in our area, receiving 52 applications for violence protection notices – a notice issued by the police to provide emergency protection to a possible victim – and 51 applications for domestic violence protection orders, which put in place protective measures in the immediate aftermath of a domestic violence incident.

Nationally, arrests, like recorded crimes, were up compared with the previous year.

Across England and Wales, the police made 64,283 arrests for domestic abuse-related crimes (in the 40 police forces that could supply adequate data).

That was up by 24 per cent compared with the same period in the previous year (49,534 arrests).

There were also 3,242 instances of voluntary attendance and 56,945 child protection referrals for domestic abuse.

Overall, police forces recorded 259,324 domestic abuse crimes between March and June this year.

That is the equivalent of one in five crimes.

The 259,324 offences represent a seven per cent increase from 242,413 in the same period in 2019 and an 18% increase from 218,968 in 2018.

However, the ONS said the number of offences flagged as involving domestic abuse has been increasing over recent years, so it cannot be determined whether the rise is directly due to the pandemic.