April 14, 2025 • 30 mins
In this powerful episode, Sarah Whitelegge, Senior Associate in the Family Team at Myerson, is joined by Samantha Fisher, CEO of Trafford Domestic Abuse Services (TDAS). Samantha discusses the various forms of domestic abuse beyond the physical, including emotional, psychological, financial, and digital abuse. Together, they explore how individuals can recognise the signs of domestic abuse and provide support to those who may be experiencing it.
They also address the growing issue of coercive and controlling behaviour and discuss the resources available to victims and their families. Samantha shares insights into TDAS's essential work supporting victims of domestic abuse, including their innovative male refuge project, the "Words Matter" video with Life Church Manchester, and the importance of prevention through education, particularly in schools.
For anyone concerned about someone who may be experiencing domestic abuse, this episode provides practical advice on how to offer support and where to access help.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
- Trafford Domestic Abuse Services (TDAS): TDAS Website
- Refuge’s 24-Hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline: 0808 2000 247
- TDAS 'Words Matter' Video: TDAS Words Matter
Tune in to learn how you can play a role in supporting victims of domestic abuse and help raise awareness about this crucial issue.
Stay tuned for more episodes of MyFamily Pod, where we tackle the issues that matter most to families. Don’t forget to subscribe and follow us on social media for updates!
LinkedIn: Myerson Solicitors
Instagram: @Myerson.Solicitors
Website: www.myerson.co.uk
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 01 (00:01):
Hello and welcome to My Family Pod, the podcast for
anyone navigating family andrelationship challenges in their
life.
I'm Sarah Whitelag, a seniorassociate in the family team at
(00:24):
Myerson, and today I'm joined bySam Fisher, the CEO of Trafford
Domestic Abuse Services, totalk about what TDS does and how
you can help friends, familymembers or co-workers who may
have experienced or areexperiencing domestic abuse.
Thank you for being here, Sam.
(00:50):
Would you like to introduceyourself and tell us a bit more
about what you're doing?
Speaker 00 (00:54):
Yeah, thank you for having us here today, Sarah.
So, I'm Sam Fisher.
I should say I'm the CEO ofTrafford Domestic Abuse
Services, which is a localcharity based in Trafford
offering advice, support,accommodation and training to
any victim, survivor or familyfriend who has experienced or is
(01:14):
experiencing domestic abuse.
But of course
Speaker 01 (01:17):
domestic abuse can be such a difficult subject to
talk about but it's reallyimportant that we raise
awareness about it.
I was reading from the CrimeSurvey for England and Wales
that an estimated 2.3 millionpeople aged 16 years or over
experienced domestic abuse inthe year ending March 2024,
which is a significant amount ofpeople.
Speaker 00 (01:37):
Yes, it is, and I think the reality is when we see
them statistics, we have toremember that this is actual
people, this is individuals.
Domestic abuse does affect onein four women, one in six men,
one in five children, and thereality is them figures alone
are scary, aren't they?
(01:58):
But them figures are what'sreported.
You know, we support a lot ofpeople who would never report to
the police or identifythemselves as a victim or
survivor of domestic abuse andalso we've got to consider the
people who aren't even realisingthey're in an abusive
relationship so it's probably alot more than that.
(02:18):
It's
Speaker 01 (02:18):
good that there is more awareness and people are
talking about this more and Ithink it's right what you just
said Sam that as a familysolicitor we understand how
abuse features in so manyrelationships and I agree that
we speak to many clients on aregular basis who don't
necessarily realize that theyare in an abusive relationship
(02:39):
and i think that's why it's it'smore important that there is
more awareness in terms of thetype of abuse a lot of people we
speak to still associatedomestic abuse as being physical
abuse but obviously there's alot more ranging domestic abuse
behaviors than just physicalabuse
Speaker 00 (02:56):
yeah and that And that's the important thing to
stress, isn't it?
Like, we still hear people talkabout domestic violence rather
than domestic abuse, and thefact is, physical abuse is an
awful aspect of domestic abuse,but there's so much more other
ways that victim-survivors areexperiencing that domestic
abuse, from emotional,psychological, financial...
(03:20):
and sexual gaslighting, thatcoercion of control.
And when we think about thepeople that access our services,
we support over 2,000 people ayear and the majority of them
haven't actually experiencedphysical abuse.
A lot of it is around thatpsychological abuse, financial
abuse.
Physical abuse is a harrowingaspect and the reality is it
(03:45):
does happen and it happens alot.
But there is so much more thatunderlies that level of abuse in
terms of what people experienceand the level of intimidation
that abusers can often put ontotheir victims.
And so, yeah, it's muchwide-ranging and it's so
important, which I'm so gladyou've invited us in today, that
(04:05):
we really raise awareness ofall aspects of what constitutes
domestic abuse.
Speaker 01 (04:10):
We recently blogged about coercive and controlling
behaviour, and I think it'simportant to discuss this type
of abuse.
It's obviously gained a lotmore legal recognition over the
years.
And like I mentioned before, weoften speak to clients who have
experienced this behaviour, butmaybe aren't aware of it or
ready to be aware of it.
Are you able to provide a fewexamples of what might be
(04:30):
considered to be coercive andcontrolling behaviour,
especially to people who mightnot be as familiar with that
term?
Speaker 00 (04:36):
Yeah, and I think this is one of the kind of areas
of domestic abuse where peoplemight often not realise they're
in an abusive relationship untillater down the line when they
look back, because a lot of theaspects of coercion and control
can include things likeisolation, so isolating you from
friends and family, andinitially when you start an
(04:58):
relationship that might not beyou're not allowed to see them
it's small kind of barriers thatthey put in place to isolate
you over a period of time a lotof that coercion control it can
be coming down to controllingwhat you wear what you eat the
financial abuse can often comeinto coercion and control as
well in how you're allowed ornot allowed to manage your
(05:19):
finances like say about theisolation so putting you away
from your support networks whichis is vital to all of us isn't
it as human beings that we havethem support networks Coercion
control could also beintimidation, like instilling
fear in somebody, and that mightnot be by words.
It could just be body languageor the way somebody looks at you
(05:42):
that makes you feel in fear ofthem, and then that controls
aspects of your life.
You know not to do somethingbecause of the way somebody's
looked at you or the way thatsomebody says something.
It's so wide-ranging, a lot ofthe psychological abuse that
happens Victims of VirusExperience underlies that
coercion and control.
When people deny what you'vesaid, make you question your own
(06:05):
reality, which is wheregaslighting can often come in.
And I know that's a bit of abuzzword at the moment, but it
shouldn't be because the realityis that it's that psychological
abuse where you put somethinginto somebody's head where
they're starting to questiontheir own reality that, you
know, well, I didn't say that toyou.
You know, you must have donethat.
(06:26):
But putting a lot of thatvictim blaming and putting it
back on that person.
I mean, it's so wide rangingand that's why, as I said, first
of all that a lot of peopledon't actually realize what
they're experiencing becausethere's them subtle subtleties
Speaker 01 (06:43):
it's very subtle yeah and when you've experienced
that over such a prolongedperiod of time yeah it's going
to be very difficult for you tounderstand that but then also to
take steps to deal with it ifyou're not completely aware with
it or if you're so worn down byit in terms of someone's
behavior towards you i thinkWhat I found quite useful and
will include a link to thiswithin the podcast is the video
(07:04):
that TDAS had produced with LifeChurch Manchester called Words
Matter and I think the video isreally helpful to break down
some of those stereotypes ofdomestic abuse and raise
awareness about it as well.
Are you able to tell us a bitmore about the video and what
you wanted to achieve with that?
Speaker 00 (07:22):
Yes, so the main aim when we approached Life Church
and wanted to raise awarenesswas around it was pretty much
around a myth busting and thateducational piece not just for
victims and survivors but forfriends, family the public,
professionals employers becausewords do matter and the way that
(07:47):
we respond and support somebodywho's experiencing domestic
abuse can really determinewhether they access help so I
think The key aim for that wasaround that awareness raising
for everybody in terms of thatmyth-busting aspect of what a
typical victim may look like.
(08:09):
Some of the things that weoften hear people say and also
raising that awareness of wherepeople can get support from and
that there is support for peopleout there even if they're not
experiencing abuse right now andit's a historic thing.
That emotional tie, thatemotional abuse that they've
(08:29):
experienced is long lasting andlong impacting.
So yeah, it was absolutelyaround raising that awareness.
Speaker 01 (08:36):
I think what really struck me when I watched the
video is one of the typicalquestions is, why don't you just
leave?
And I think what was addressedso well in that video is the
fact that, well, even whenyou're in a healthy
relationship, it's not that easyto separate and leave.
So how does someone who's beena victim or survivor of abuse
necessarily make that decisionso easily?
(08:58):
There are so many ties whenyou're separating the children,
sorting out financialarrangements.
So that even when you aretrying to separate or leave a
healthy relationship, it'sincredibly difficult.
Speaker 00 (09:10):
Yeah, absolutely.
And I think that's one of thekey points that we wanted to
make.
When you are ending a healthyrelationship, there's so many
things to think about.
But then you add abuse intothat.
And years of coercion andcontrol, that person then
doubting themselves, are theyable to leave, are they able to
survive on their own?
You know, if there's financialabuse involved, they might not
(09:32):
have had control over their ownmoney.
The perpetrator may have usedthreats to have the children
taken off them.
There's over so many...
periods of time being told allthese things and being you know
lost their support networks whenwe was talking about an
isolation before you know ifyou've been isolated to a point
(09:53):
where you feel you've not gotyour support networks and all
you've got is that perpetratorthat really can result in them
staying in a relationship longerbecause they don't feel like
they have anywhere to go oranybody to speak to about it i
think The fact of really homingin on how difficult leaving a
healthy relationship is willhopefully enable people to
(10:15):
understand how difficult it isto leave an abusive
relationship.
And we need to stop saying, whydon't you just leave?
Or we need to be changing thatnarrative and saying, well, why
don't they just stop?
Like, we can't be victimblaming.
You know, the onus is on theabuser.
And I think that was one of thekey messages we wanted to get
across in the
Speaker 01 (10:35):
video.
Yeah, I mean, it really does.
It's really helpful.
At Myosin, we will help victimsof abuse if they need legal
protection from the familycourts by way of non-molestation
orders or occupation orders, orwe can apply for urgent
applications to safeguardchildren, such as pivoted steps
orders to prevent a parent fromexercising their parental
responsibility or removing achild from a parent.
(10:57):
But what practical support canTDAS offer to victims of abuse
trying to leave abusiverelationships?
Speaker 00 (11:05):
We offer a lot of emotional support.
Our staff are trained to, youknow, support victims and
survivors with the emotionalaspects.
But practical, it could beanything from support with
housing.
It could be whether they needto move house or they need
target hardening on theirproperties, which are safety
measures like cameras, windowlocks and things.
(11:25):
You know, if they want to staysafely in their own home.
It could be support with theirchildren.
So we have group programmesthat...
children and young people canattend because a big part of the
support that we want to offeris building the relationship and
attachment between children andthe non-abusive parent because
sometimes that can be reallyaffected when they've been
(11:47):
living in a household withabuse.
Financial support andbudgeting, especially where
there's been financial abuse, sowe do a lot of work on
independent living skills andsupporting them with applying.
for legal advice and advocatefor them at any meetings that
they may have.
(12:07):
It's very person-centred soeach individual is supported
based on their immediateindividual needs and we work You
know, collaboration is one ofour key values and we, you know,
are so passionate about workingwith partners to make sure that
holistic support is provided toall victim survivors regarding
(12:27):
anything that they feel thatthey need to move on with their
lives.
Speaker 01 (12:32):
What was important, what you mentioned before, is
that One of the otherassumptions is that there is no
typical victim of abuse.
Many people think that victimsof abuse must be certain gender,
age, class, or in a certaintype of relationship, but
really, any person can be avictim of domestic abuse.
If our listeners are looking atsupporting friends or family
members or co-workers, are thereany signs to look out for that
(12:55):
might suggest that someone mightbe experiencing domestic abuse?
Speaker 00 (12:58):
Yeah, and I think, you know, you do have the
typical signs that people wouldoften know mention like physical
marks and emotional distress ithink the the key thing would be
a changing character as theperson you know you know are
they are they canceling meetingsare they not coming to social
(13:18):
events as much when they are arethey constantly checking in
with their partner going back toanother aspect of coercion
control is that you know we'vegot this huge digital issue now
haven't we where people'slocations can be tracked or like
social media is used thatdigital abuse is an up and
coming thing because of the waytechnology is now and so there's
(13:40):
all these kind of early signsthat you could spot in somebody
and don't get me wrong it couldbe something else is going on
for them but i think that thethe key thing is that change in
character when you're thinkingabout as an employer People
consistently being late orneeding time off.
Is there something going on inthere that they're needing
(14:01):
support with?
So it's about how we approachthat and how we make sure that
we're being trauma informed in,you know, our words do matter
and how we support somebody whomay be going through domestic
abuse is just vital.
And there's many kind of earlywarning signs and red flags.
But it is difficult to pinpointit to domestic abuse, so it's
(14:24):
just about being able to be openand honest and have them
conversations, know that there'ssupport there for people who
might not be ready to talk toyou straight away, but
eventually they will as long asthey know that there's support
there for them.
I
Speaker 01 (14:39):
think you're right, it's about being there, isn't
it?
And it's about asking people,are they OK?
Is there anything going on forthem and is there anything that
you can do to help?
And I know that TDAS has a lotof resources online that would
help people who might have somequeries about friends or family
members or co-workers who theymight be worried about.
(14:59):
I think it's important thatpeople are aware that these
services aren't just for victimsor survivors of abuse, but also
for people who might feel thatthey need some additional
support in, say, supporting afriend as well.
Speaker 00 (15:10):
Yes, absolutely.
And we have a support line,which is not just open to
victims and survivors.
It's open to friends, family,professionals to ring for
advice.
And we do get quite a lot offriends and family members who
are concerned about somebody,who they love and who they care
about.
And we will offer that adviceand support and try to navigate
(15:31):
them through that difficultperiod.
We have a friends and familytoolkit that's available on our
website, in our resources page,that gives some real good tips
on some of them earlier warningsigns, some of the things not to
say, and where people can besignposted to, because going
back to the coercion andcontrol, the perpetrator's aim
(15:55):
of isolating victims andsurvivors from their friends and
family If you're concernedabout a friend or a family
member and, you know, you comein and you say them things like,
well, why don't we just leavethe perpetrators getting what he
wants?
Because that's another kind ofangle of isolating you because
they, you know, the victimsaren't going to feel like that
they can't come to you becauseshame, guilt.
(16:17):
So that resource toolkit thatwe developed is, you know, is
really key for friends, familymembers.
to look at, to know what to door how to support in them
situations.
And yeah, you're right,services are available for
people to get that advice aswell, not just those who are
experiencing it or haveexperienced it.
Speaker 01 (16:39):
I think just picking up on what you mentioned about
power and control, that abuse isabout power and control so that
when a survivor gets to thepoint where they do want to
leave...
they're threatening the powerthat that abuser has.
So like I mentioned earlier,it's about doing it in a safe
and managed way, isn't it?
Because if someone does want toseparate, the research shows
(17:01):
that that's often the mostdangerous time for that person.
If their abuser is aware thatthey want to separate and leave,
they feel that they're losingthat power and control and may
then act out in a way to try andregain that control.
So it's really about justmaking sure that any steps taken
are done in a safe and managedway for that person.
Speaker 00 (17:21):
Absolutely and I think you've really kind of
stressed that the importance ofthat safety aspect because
you're right when somebody'sending a relationship it really
increases the risk to thatvictim survivor because they're
losing the you know the controland the power that's often when
if there hasn't previously beenphysical harm that's often where
(17:44):
physical harm can come intoplay as well so it is a really
risky time for people and that'swhy services like ours and our
support team are there to reallyhelp do that in a safe way and
make sure that know the victimssurviving there is children
involved as safe as possiblewhile they're making that
(18:04):
life-changing
Speaker 01 (18:05):
choice it would always be our priority as well
so the family team here whenthey're supporting anyone in
that situation we'd always wantto make sure that any steps that
we take are managed in a safeway and we know that we need to
provide safe non-judgmentalspace for survivors and victims
of abuse and we know fromclients that we've dealt with
previously that it won't oftenbe the first attempt to leave
(18:25):
when someone does finallyseparate and leave and that we
see clients who've maybe tried afew times previously before
they actually can make thatfinal separation simply because
it just is not that easy forthem to do.
Speaker 00 (18:36):
No, when somebody's had control of you for so long,
there is still that and theshame and guilt that victims
often feel and they do return.
And it's so important thatthey're not judged for that and
they're supported with that aswell.
It can take a long time forsomebody to finally break that
cycle and leave an abusiverelationship.
(18:58):
So it's great that we haveagencies and services and
solicitors firms like yourselvesthat really understand that and
are able to support people in anon-judgmental way because it
will take time.
Speaker 01 (19:11):
And in terms of the other work that TDAS do, I
understand that you do quite alot of work with young people to
support them and understand howto have healthy relationships.
Are you able to tell me a bitmore about the work that TDAS do
with young people in schools?
Speaker 00 (19:25):
Yeah, absolutely.
One of our main objectives isaround prevention of domestic
abuse.
You know, we have refuges, wehave accommodation.
We want to get to a point wherethey're not needed because
we're getting to people at anearlier stage where they're not
having to flee their own homes.
So a big part of that is aroundeducation and awareness.
So we have our Supporting YoungPeople's Project, which is two
(19:50):
elements.
We have a teacher trainingoffer, so we will go in and
educate and train teachers onhow to identify abuse, how to
deal with disclosures, signpoststo services that can support
abuse, And then also for youngpeople, we educate them on what
a healthy relationship shouldlook like.
(20:11):
and what domestic abuse canconstitute and what it is for
when they're getting into theirown relationships, some of the
signs that they may need to lookout for or, you know, the early
kind of red flags.
I mean, we're seeing more andmore young people already in
their own abusive relationshipsand so this education piece is
just vital in order for us tokind of break that cycle and
(20:35):
ensure that our youngergeneration are equipped with
that knowledge of what domesticabuse is, what a healthy
relationship should look likefor them to hopefully prevent
them from becoming an adultvictim of domestic abuse in the
future.
Speaker 01 (20:49):
It's so important for that early intervention,
isn't it?
And it's important thattraining is offered to other
companies so that they can lookat how they can support
employees and understand moreabout domestic abuse so that
it's something they can look outfor when looking after their
Speaker 00 (21:05):
employees absolutely we have quite a large training
offer that's you know accreditedtraining and we do it all
bespoke as well because weappreciate different companies
will be dealing with you knowdifferent things so we need to
make it relevant but that can befrom basic domestic abuse
awareness to educating linemanagers hr teams you know on
(21:28):
supporting their colleagues or,you know, their staff who might
be experiencing domestic abuse.
We're talking about thestatistics before.
If one in four women or one insix men experience it, it is
going to be happening in theworkplace and we need to make
sure that, you know, companiesare equipped with that knowledge
and we're not expecting them tobe able to provide the direct
(21:48):
support, but it's, again, justthat words matter piece, isn't
it?
The right thing to say.
Making sure that, you know,your staff know that if they
need support, what they're goingthrough they know that their
employer will take it seriouslyand there's policies and
procedures in place and there'sstaff that have had the
appropriate training so theyfeel comfortable in being able
(22:10):
to share that.
So yeah, we do offer a largetraining package to support
people with that.
Speaker 01 (22:16):
But I think you're right that even if it just
provides some information tosomeone, it might just help.
you to think about a friend ora family member or co-worker who
may be going through somethingand I think that's why the Words
Matter video is so helpfulbecause I think it's about three
minutes long so it's no time atall just for anyone to watch it
but it might just arm you withthat information that will make
(22:37):
you think about things a bitdifferently in terms of how you
have those conversations to becareful about what you say but
also to make you think okayMaybe something is going on for
this person in my life and whatsteps can I do to then try and
help them?
For anyone listening to thispodcast who feel like that they
need help with what we've beendiscussing today or whether
there's someone that they lovewho they think might need some
(23:00):
more help, what are the bestresources for them to look at?
Speaker 00 (23:03):
we have a large resource section on our website
and we have the support linewhere people can get advice but
there's so much information outthere this other organization
similar to us in all kind ofareas of the country so there is
so much information out therefor people to access just to
increase their awareness lookfor you know support services i
(23:27):
think In terms of resources aswell, not everything has to be
domestic abuse organisationsbecause a lot of people who
access our services, we're notthe first people they've
disclosed to.
You know, a lot of the timethey referred on to us from
whether it be the GP, you know,housing.
or a family and friend hasreferred them to us and if it's
(23:49):
just that bit of informationthat you've got that you can
pass on to somebody you'reconcerned about or you're
worried about then that's thefirst step in in trying to
support them to to access anyhelp that they may need but you
know our website does have anarray of resources on and there
for various aspects of domesticabuse.
I live with different agencieswhere to get support, whether
(24:12):
that be around kind of financialsupport.
You know, a lot of banks noware recognising domestic abuse
as a feature because anotherreason why people may struggle
to leave is if you've got agiant mortgage and there's all
that financial aspect and a lotof banks are recognising that
and putting policies in place.
A lot of housing associationsare doing the same where there's
(24:33):
giant tenants is puttingclauses in the leases now we are
moving in the right directionwhich is really positive to see
and all them kind of areas ofresource and information even if
you don't want to access directdomestic abuse support there is
that information out there youknow just to equip people with
the knowledge of what isavailable for them so they can
(24:56):
kind of plan and make the nextsteps
Speaker 01 (24:58):
and in terms of TDAS as an organization you know
even just during thisconversation today we've heard
about so many services thatyou're running the support that
you're providing for thoselistening who would like to
support TDAS what can people doto get involved or help.
Speaker 00 (25:13):
Yeah, we're always looking for support, especially
around fundraising.
We are a charity and we doconstantly have to look to find
funds for services.
And just to put it intocontext, we have 37 refuge
spaces for safe accommodationand it costs us over £40,000 a
year just to fund one of them.
(25:34):
So it's a lot of money.
So we're always looking forpeople to support in any way,
shape or form.
We do have a fundraisingplatform.
section on our website there'sso many different ways people
can get involved whether youknow we have events that people
can sign up to charity partnersyou know with corporate
organisations but we appreciatethat it doesn't always have to
(25:57):
be monetary you know it could bedonation of items you know
welcome packs for example forthe families that live in our
refuge or it could be we haveyou know team days you know we
do have a lot of safeaccommodation that you know
people will come in and kind ofhelp us to do the garden or
decorate there's so manydifferent ways people can can
(26:18):
get involved with us as anorganization and we're always
open to new ways of workingtogether and ideas too yeah the
website does have kind of allthe details on if anybody's
interested in getting involvedand supporting us you know
that's the best place to lookand you know would be so
grateful for any support anybodycan give us
Speaker 01 (26:36):
So Sam, just going back to some of the other
assumptions that people makeabout what might be considered
to be a typical victim orsurvivor of domestic abuse.
You mentioned stats earlierthat one in four women would
experience abuse, but also onein six men would experience
domestic abuse.
I understand that TIDAS have arefuge to support male survivors
(26:58):
of domestic abuse.
Speaker 00 (26:59):
Yes, so we've always supported male victims of
domestic abuse, but a huge gapin our service was being able to
offer safe accommodation enoughsafe accommodation for male
victims so we kind of looked atan innovative way of doing that
two years ago and opened thefirst male refuge in Greater
(27:20):
Manchester, Oak House.
So we have a male safe refugethat houses six men at any one
time.
I mean, it's been a hugesuccess in the two years we've
opened the refuge and that'sbeen with support from other
Greater Manchester boroughs as akind of collaboration support
for male victims because thereisn't enough refuge space full
(27:43):
stop for any victim survivoracross the country.
But, you know, male victims,there certainly isn't many.
So that is a project we'reextremely proud of and another
step in breaking the myths and,you know, changing the narrative
on male victims of domesticabuse because they deserve
safety.
You know, they deserve to beable to move on with their lives
(28:04):
and be free from domestic abuseas well.
Speaker 01 (28:07):
And in terms of that awareness for male victims, do
you find that there are lessmale victims still coming
forward in terms of opening upabout the abuse that they've
experienced?
Speaker 00 (28:18):
Yes, in terms of if you looked at our data, we do
support more.
women than we do men howeversince opening the refuge our
referrals have increased quitesubstantially so you know we was
on a 43 percent increase fromapril to december this year
compared to the whole of lastfinancial year so i think it's a
(28:40):
little bit like chicken and eggisn't it like you you know
there's a need but until you putsomething in place and people
are aware of it and aware what'savailable that's when you start
to see actually that we'regetting more people coming
through who are asking forsupport because they know it's
there so it's just all aboutthat awareness race is an end
(29:00):
and letting victim survivorsknow that no matter what your
background no matter what kindof demographics no matter
anything you know anybody can bea victim of domestic abuse and
there is services for everybodythat may be experiencing or has
Speaker 01 (29:14):
experienced it.
I think TDAS are just reallyhelping to break down those
barriers for people to be ableto access that support in terms
of the range of services thatyou're offering.
Speaker 00 (29:23):
Yeah and it's key for us you know to being
inclusive is one of our corevalues so it's vital and there
is other specialistorganisations but and would be
better equipped to support somevictims, survivors of domestic
abuse.
And it's important that wecollaborate with them and we
partner with them to ensure thattheir needs are met
appropriately.
Speaker 01 (29:44):
Thank you, Sam, for coming in to talk to me today
and for sharing your insights.
I hope this conversation willhelp people who may be
experiencing domestic abuse orare concerned about someone who
is.
If you are listening and you doneed help in relation to the
issues we've discussed, thenplease get in touch with TDAS on
0161 872 7368 or you can alsocontact Refuge's 24-hour
(30:06):
National Domestic Abuse Helplineon 0808 2000 247.
We'll post a link to the WordsMatter video in the podcast
description and share theresources that we discussed
earlier.
Speaker 00 (30:19):
So thank you so much for having me here today to
really shine a spotlight ondomestic abuse and make sure
that we're increasing theawareness around what it is to
see the public.
Thank you for coming in, Sam.
We really appreciate your time.
Unknown (30:33):
you
Hello and welcome to My Family Pod, the podcast for
anyone navigating family andrelationship challenges in their
life.
I'm Sarah Whitelag, a seniorassociate in the family team at
(00:24):
Myerson, and today I'm joined bySam Fisher, the CEO of Trafford
Domestic Abuse Services, totalk about what TDS does and how
you can help friends, familymembers or co-workers who may
have experienced or areexperiencing domestic abuse.
Thank you for being here, Sam.
(00:50):
Would you like to introduceyourself and tell us a bit more
about what you're doing?
Speaker 00 (00:54):
Yeah, thank you for having us here today, Sarah.
So, I'm Sam Fisher.
I should say I'm the CEO ofTrafford Domestic Abuse
Services, which is a localcharity based in Trafford
offering advice, support,accommodation and training to
any victim, survivor or familyfriend who has experienced or is
(01:14):
experiencing domestic abuse.
But of course
Speaker 01 (01:17):
domestic abuse can be such a difficult subject to
talk about but it's reallyimportant that we raise
awareness about it.
I was reading from the CrimeSurvey for England and Wales
that an estimated 2.3 millionpeople aged 16 years or over
experienced domestic abuse inthe year ending March 2024,
which is a significant amount ofpeople.
Speaker 00 (01:37):
Yes, it is, and I think the reality is when we see
them statistics, we have toremember that this is actual
people, this is individuals.
Domestic abuse does affect onein four women, one in six men,
one in five children, and thereality is them figures alone
are scary, aren't they?
(01:58):
But them figures are what'sreported.
You know, we support a lot ofpeople who would never report to
the police or identifythemselves as a victim or
survivor of domestic abuse andalso we've got to consider the
people who aren't even realisingthey're in an abusive
relationship so it's probably alot more than that.
(02:18):
It's
Speaker 01 (02:18):
good that there is more awareness and people are
talking about this more and Ithink it's right what you just
said Sam that as a familysolicitor we understand how
abuse features in so manyrelationships and I agree that
we speak to many clients on aregular basis who don't
necessarily realize that theyare in an abusive relationship
(02:39):
and i think that's why it's it'smore important that there is
more awareness in terms of thetype of abuse a lot of people we
speak to still associatedomestic abuse as being physical
abuse but obviously there's alot more ranging domestic abuse
behaviors than just physicalabuse
Speaker 00 (02:56):
yeah and that And that's the important thing to
stress, isn't it?
Like, we still hear people talkabout domestic violence rather
than domestic abuse, and thefact is, physical abuse is an
awful aspect of domestic abuse,but there's so much more other
ways that victim-survivors areexperiencing that domestic
abuse, from emotional,psychological, financial...
(03:20):
and sexual gaslighting, thatcoercion of control.
And when we think about thepeople that access our services,
we support over 2,000 people ayear and the majority of them
haven't actually experiencedphysical abuse.
A lot of it is around thatpsychological abuse, financial
abuse.
Physical abuse is a harrowingaspect and the reality is it
(03:45):
does happen and it happens alot.
But there is so much more thatunderlies that level of abuse in
terms of what people experienceand the level of intimidation
that abusers can often put ontotheir victims.
And so, yeah, it's muchwide-ranging and it's so
important, which I'm so gladyou've invited us in today, that
(04:05):
we really raise awareness ofall aspects of what constitutes
domestic abuse.
Speaker 01 (04:10):
We recently blogged about coercive and controlling
behaviour, and I think it'simportant to discuss this type
of abuse.
It's obviously gained a lotmore legal recognition over the
years.
And like I mentioned before, weoften speak to clients who have
experienced this behaviour, butmaybe aren't aware of it or
ready to be aware of it.
Are you able to provide a fewexamples of what might be
(04:30):
considered to be coercive andcontrolling behaviour,
especially to people who mightnot be as familiar with that
term?
Speaker 00 (04:36):
Yeah, and I think this is one of the kind of areas
of domestic abuse where peoplemight often not realise they're
in an abusive relationship untillater down the line when they
look back, because a lot of theaspects of coercion and control
can include things likeisolation, so isolating you from
friends and family, andinitially when you start an
(04:58):
relationship that might not beyou're not allowed to see them
it's small kind of barriers thatthey put in place to isolate
you over a period of time a lotof that coercion control it can
be coming down to controllingwhat you wear what you eat the
financial abuse can often comeinto coercion and control as
well in how you're allowed ornot allowed to manage your
(05:19):
finances like say about theisolation so putting you away
from your support networks whichis is vital to all of us isn't
it as human beings that we havethem support networks Coercion
control could also beintimidation, like instilling
fear in somebody, and that mightnot be by words.
It could just be body languageor the way somebody looks at you
(05:42):
that makes you feel in fear ofthem, and then that controls
aspects of your life.
You know not to do somethingbecause of the way somebody's
looked at you or the way thatsomebody says something.
It's so wide-ranging, a lot ofthe psychological abuse that
happens Victims of VirusExperience underlies that
coercion and control.
When people deny what you'vesaid, make you question your own
(06:05):
reality, which is wheregaslighting can often come in.
And I know that's a bit of abuzzword at the moment, but it
shouldn't be because the realityis that it's that psychological
abuse where you put somethinginto somebody's head where
they're starting to questiontheir own reality that, you
know, well, I didn't say that toyou.
You know, you must have donethat.
(06:26):
But putting a lot of thatvictim blaming and putting it
back on that person.
I mean, it's so wide rangingand that's why, as I said, first
of all that a lot of peopledon't actually realize what
they're experiencing becausethere's them subtle subtleties
Speaker 01 (06:43):
it's very subtle yeah and when you've experienced
that over such a prolongedperiod of time yeah it's going
to be very difficult for you tounderstand that but then also to
take steps to deal with it ifyou're not completely aware with
it or if you're so worn down byit in terms of someone's
behavior towards you i thinkWhat I found quite useful and
will include a link to thiswithin the podcast is the video
(07:04):
that TDAS had produced with LifeChurch Manchester called Words
Matter and I think the video isreally helpful to break down
some of those stereotypes ofdomestic abuse and raise
awareness about it as well.
Are you able to tell us a bitmore about the video and what
you wanted to achieve with that?
Speaker 00 (07:22):
Yes, so the main aim when we approached Life Church
and wanted to raise awarenesswas around it was pretty much
around a myth busting and thateducational piece not just for
victims and survivors but forfriends, family the public,
professionals employers becausewords do matter and the way that
(07:47):
we respond and support somebodywho's experiencing domestic
abuse can really determinewhether they access help so I
think The key aim for that wasaround that awareness raising
for everybody in terms of thatmyth-busting aspect of what a
typical victim may look like.
(08:09):
Some of the things that weoften hear people say and also
raising that awareness of wherepeople can get support from and
that there is support for peopleout there even if they're not
experiencing abuse right now andit's a historic thing.
That emotional tie, thatemotional abuse that they've
(08:29):
experienced is long lasting andlong impacting.
So yeah, it was absolutelyaround raising that awareness.
Speaker 01 (08:36):
I think what really struck me when I watched the
video is one of the typicalquestions is, why don't you just
leave?
And I think what was addressedso well in that video is the
fact that, well, even whenyou're in a healthy
relationship, it's not that easyto separate and leave.
So how does someone who's beena victim or survivor of abuse
necessarily make that decisionso easily?
(08:58):
There are so many ties whenyou're separating the children,
sorting out financialarrangements.
So that even when you aretrying to separate or leave a
healthy relationship, it'sincredibly difficult.
Speaker 00 (09:10):
Yeah, absolutely.
And I think that's one of thekey points that we wanted to
make.
When you are ending a healthyrelationship, there's so many
things to think about.
But then you add abuse intothat.
And years of coercion andcontrol, that person then
doubting themselves, are theyable to leave, are they able to
survive on their own?
You know, if there's financialabuse involved, they might not
(09:32):
have had control over their ownmoney.
The perpetrator may have usedthreats to have the children
taken off them.
There's over so many...
periods of time being told allthese things and being you know
lost their support networks whenwe was talking about an
isolation before you know ifyou've been isolated to a point
(09:53):
where you feel you've not gotyour support networks and all
you've got is that perpetratorthat really can result in them
staying in a relationship longerbecause they don't feel like
they have anywhere to go oranybody to speak to about it i
think The fact of really homingin on how difficult leaving a
healthy relationship is willhopefully enable people to
(10:15):
understand how difficult it isto leave an abusive
relationship.
And we need to stop saying, whydon't you just leave?
Or we need to be changing thatnarrative and saying, well, why
don't they just stop?
Like, we can't be victimblaming.
You know, the onus is on theabuser.
And I think that was one of thekey messages we wanted to get
across in the
Speaker 01 (10:35):
video.
Yeah, I mean, it really does.
It's really helpful.
At Myosin, we will help victimsof abuse if they need legal
protection from the familycourts by way of non-molestation
orders or occupation orders, orwe can apply for urgent
applications to safeguardchildren, such as pivoted steps
orders to prevent a parent fromexercising their parental
responsibility or removing achild from a parent.
(10:57):
But what practical support canTDAS offer to victims of abuse
trying to leave abusiverelationships?
Speaker 00 (11:05):
We offer a lot of emotional support.
Our staff are trained to, youknow, support victims and
survivors with the emotionalaspects.
But practical, it could beanything from support with
housing.
It could be whether they needto move house or they need
target hardening on theirproperties, which are safety
measures like cameras, windowlocks and things.
(11:25):
You know, if they want to staysafely in their own home.
It could be support with theirchildren.
So we have group programmesthat...
children and young people canattend because a big part of the
support that we want to offeris building the relationship and
attachment between children andthe non-abusive parent because
sometimes that can be reallyaffected when they've been
(11:47):
living in a household withabuse.
Financial support andbudgeting, especially where
there's been financial abuse, sowe do a lot of work on
independent living skills andsupporting them with applying.
for legal advice and advocatefor them at any meetings that
they may have.
(12:07):
It's very person-centred soeach individual is supported
based on their immediateindividual needs and we work You
know, collaboration is one ofour key values and we, you know,
are so passionate about workingwith partners to make sure that
holistic support is provided toall victim survivors regarding
(12:27):
anything that they feel thatthey need to move on with their
lives.
Speaker 01 (12:32):
What was important, what you mentioned before, is
that One of the otherassumptions is that there is no
typical victim of abuse.
Many people think that victimsof abuse must be certain gender,
age, class, or in a certaintype of relationship, but
really, any person can be avictim of domestic abuse.
If our listeners are looking atsupporting friends or family
members or co-workers, are thereany signs to look out for that
(12:55):
might suggest that someone mightbe experiencing domestic abuse?
Speaker 00 (12:58):
Yeah, and I think, you know, you do have the
typical signs that people wouldoften know mention like physical
marks and emotional distress ithink the the key thing would be
a changing character as theperson you know you know are
they are they canceling meetingsare they not coming to social
(13:18):
events as much when they are arethey constantly checking in
with their partner going back toanother aspect of coercion
control is that you know we'vegot this huge digital issue now
haven't we where people'slocations can be tracked or like
social media is used thatdigital abuse is an up and
coming thing because of the waytechnology is now and so there's
(13:40):
all these kind of early signsthat you could spot in somebody
and don't get me wrong it couldbe something else is going on
for them but i think that thethe key thing is that change in
character when you're thinkingabout as an employer People
consistently being late orneeding time off.
Is there something going on inthere that they're needing
(14:01):
support with?
So it's about how we approachthat and how we make sure that
we're being trauma informed in,you know, our words do matter
and how we support somebody whomay be going through domestic
abuse is just vital.
And there's many kind of earlywarning signs and red flags.
But it is difficult to pinpointit to domestic abuse, so it's
(14:24):
just about being able to be openand honest and have them
conversations, know that there'ssupport there for people who
might not be ready to talk toyou straight away, but
eventually they will as long asthey know that there's support
there for them.
I
Speaker 01 (14:39):
think you're right, it's about being there, isn't
it?
And it's about asking people,are they OK?
Is there anything going on forthem and is there anything that
you can do to help?
And I know that TDAS has a lotof resources online that would
help people who might have somequeries about friends or family
members or co-workers who theymight be worried about.
(14:59):
I think it's important thatpeople are aware that these
services aren't just for victimsor survivors of abuse, but also
for people who might feel thatthey need some additional
support in, say, supporting afriend as well.
Speaker 00 (15:10):
Yes, absolutely.
And we have a support line,which is not just open to
victims and survivors.
It's open to friends, family,professionals to ring for
advice.
And we do get quite a lot offriends and family members who
are concerned about somebody,who they love and who they care
about.
And we will offer that adviceand support and try to navigate
(15:31):
them through that difficultperiod.
We have a friends and familytoolkit that's available on our
website, in our resources page,that gives some real good tips
on some of them earlier warningsigns, some of the things not to
say, and where people can besignposted to, because going
back to the coercion andcontrol, the perpetrator's aim
(15:55):
of isolating victims andsurvivors from their friends and
family If you're concernedabout a friend or a family
member and, you know, you comein and you say them things like,
well, why don't we just leavethe perpetrators getting what he
wants?
Because that's another kind ofangle of isolating you because
they, you know, the victimsaren't going to feel like that
they can't come to you becauseshame, guilt.
(16:17):
So that resource toolkit thatwe developed is, you know, is
really key for friends, familymembers.
to look at, to know what to door how to support in them
situations.
And yeah, you're right,services are available for
people to get that advice aswell, not just those who are
experiencing it or haveexperienced it.
Speaker 01 (16:39):
I think just picking up on what you mentioned about
power and control, that abuse isabout power and control so that
when a survivor gets to thepoint where they do want to
leave...
they're threatening the powerthat that abuser has.
So like I mentioned earlier,it's about doing it in a safe
and managed way, isn't it?
Because if someone does want toseparate, the research shows
(17:01):
that that's often the mostdangerous time for that person.
If their abuser is aware thatthey want to separate and leave,
they feel that they're losingthat power and control and may
then act out in a way to try andregain that control.
So it's really about justmaking sure that any steps taken
are done in a safe and managedway for that person.
Speaker 00 (17:21):
Absolutely and I think you've really kind of
stressed that the importance ofthat safety aspect because
you're right when somebody'sending a relationship it really
increases the risk to thatvictim survivor because they're
losing the you know the controland the power that's often when
if there hasn't previously beenphysical harm that's often where
(17:44):
physical harm can come intoplay as well so it is a really
risky time for people and that'swhy services like ours and our
support team are there to reallyhelp do that in a safe way and
make sure that know the victimssurviving there is children
involved as safe as possiblewhile they're making that
(18:04):
life-changing
Speaker 01 (18:05):
choice it would always be our priority as well
so the family team here whenthey're supporting anyone in
that situation we'd always wantto make sure that any steps that
we take are managed in a safeway and we know that we need to
provide safe non-judgmentalspace for survivors and victims
of abuse and we know fromclients that we've dealt with
previously that it won't oftenbe the first attempt to leave
(18:25):
when someone does finallyseparate and leave and that we
see clients who've maybe tried afew times previously before
they actually can make thatfinal separation simply because
it just is not that easy forthem to do.
Speaker 00 (18:36):
No, when somebody's had control of you for so long,
there is still that and theshame and guilt that victims
often feel and they do return.
And it's so important thatthey're not judged for that and
they're supported with that aswell.
It can take a long time forsomebody to finally break that
cycle and leave an abusiverelationship.
(18:58):
So it's great that we haveagencies and services and
solicitors firms like yourselvesthat really understand that and
are able to support people in anon-judgmental way because it
will take time.
Speaker 01 (19:11):
And in terms of the other work that TDAS do, I
understand that you do quite alot of work with young people to
support them and understand howto have healthy relationships.
Are you able to tell me a bitmore about the work that TDAS do
with young people in schools?
Speaker 00 (19:25):
Yeah, absolutely.
One of our main objectives isaround prevention of domestic
abuse.
You know, we have refuges, wehave accommodation.
We want to get to a point wherethey're not needed because
we're getting to people at anearlier stage where they're not
having to flee their own homes.
So a big part of that is aroundeducation and awareness.
So we have our Supporting YoungPeople's Project, which is two
(19:50):
elements.
We have a teacher trainingoffer, so we will go in and
educate and train teachers onhow to identify abuse, how to
deal with disclosures, signpoststo services that can support
abuse, And then also for youngpeople, we educate them on what
a healthy relationship shouldlook like.
(20:11):
and what domestic abuse canconstitute and what it is for
when they're getting into theirown relationships, some of the
signs that they may need to lookout for or, you know, the early
kind of red flags.
I mean, we're seeing more andmore young people already in
their own abusive relationshipsand so this education piece is
just vital in order for us tokind of break that cycle and
(20:35):
ensure that our youngergeneration are equipped with
that knowledge of what domesticabuse is, what a healthy
relationship should look likefor them to hopefully prevent
them from becoming an adultvictim of domestic abuse in the
future.
Speaker 01 (20:49):
It's so important for that early intervention,
isn't it?
And it's important thattraining is offered to other
companies so that they can lookat how they can support
employees and understand moreabout domestic abuse so that
it's something they can look outfor when looking after their
Speaker 00 (21:05):
employees absolutely we have quite a large training
offer that's you know accreditedtraining and we do it all
bespoke as well because weappreciate different companies
will be dealing with you knowdifferent things so we need to
make it relevant but that can befrom basic domestic abuse
awareness to educating linemanagers hr teams you know on
(21:28):
supporting their colleagues or,you know, their staff who might
be experiencing domestic abuse.
We're talking about thestatistics before.
If one in four women or one insix men experience it, it is
going to be happening in theworkplace and we need to make
sure that, you know, companiesare equipped with that knowledge
and we're not expecting them tobe able to provide the direct
(21:48):
support, but it's, again, justthat words matter piece, isn't
it?
The right thing to say.
Making sure that, you know,your staff know that if they
need support, what they're goingthrough they know that their
employer will take it seriouslyand there's policies and
procedures in place and there'sstaff that have had the
appropriate training so theyfeel comfortable in being able
(22:10):
to share that.
So yeah, we do offer a largetraining package to support
people with that.
Speaker 01 (22:16):
But I think you're right that even if it just
provides some information tosomeone, it might just help.
you to think about a friend ora family member or co-worker who
may be going through somethingand I think that's why the Words
Matter video is so helpfulbecause I think it's about three
minutes long so it's no time atall just for anyone to watch it
but it might just arm you withthat information that will make
(22:37):
you think about things a bitdifferently in terms of how you
have those conversations to becareful about what you say but
also to make you think okayMaybe something is going on for
this person in my life and whatsteps can I do to then try and
help them?
For anyone listening to thispodcast who feel like that they
need help with what we've beendiscussing today or whether
there's someone that they lovewho they think might need some
(23:00):
more help, what are the bestresources for them to look at?
Speaker 00 (23:03):
we have a large resource section on our website
and we have the support linewhere people can get advice but
there's so much information outthere this other organization
similar to us in all kind ofareas of the country so there is
so much information out therefor people to access just to
increase their awareness lookfor you know support services i
(23:27):
think In terms of resources aswell, not everything has to be
domestic abuse organisationsbecause a lot of people who
access our services, we're notthe first people they've
disclosed to.
You know, a lot of the timethey referred on to us from
whether it be the GP, you know,housing.
or a family and friend hasreferred them to us and if it's
(23:49):
just that bit of informationthat you've got that you can
pass on to somebody you'reconcerned about or you're
worried about then that's thefirst step in in trying to
support them to to access anyhelp that they may need but you
know our website does have anarray of resources on and there
for various aspects of domesticabuse.
I live with different agencieswhere to get support, whether
(24:12):
that be around kind of financialsupport.
You know, a lot of banks noware recognising domestic abuse
as a feature because anotherreason why people may struggle
to leave is if you've got agiant mortgage and there's all
that financial aspect and a lotof banks are recognising that
and putting policies in place.
A lot of housing associationsare doing the same where there's
(24:33):
giant tenants is puttingclauses in the leases now we are
moving in the right directionwhich is really positive to see
and all them kind of areas ofresource and information even if
you don't want to access directdomestic abuse support there is
that information out there youknow just to equip people with
the knowledge of what isavailable for them so they can
(24:56):
kind of plan and make the nextsteps
Speaker 01 (24:58):
and in terms of TDAS as an organization you know
even just during thisconversation today we've heard
about so many services thatyou're running the support that
you're providing for thoselistening who would like to
support TDAS what can people doto get involved or help.
Speaker 00 (25:13):
Yeah, we're always looking for support, especially
around fundraising.
We are a charity and we doconstantly have to look to find
funds for services.
And just to put it intocontext, we have 37 refuge
spaces for safe accommodationand it costs us over £40,000 a
year just to fund one of them.
(25:34):
So it's a lot of money.
So we're always looking forpeople to support in any way,
shape or form.
We do have a fundraisingplatform.
section on our website there'sso many different ways people
can get involved whether youknow we have events that people
can sign up to charity partnersyou know with corporate
organisations but we appreciatethat it doesn't always have to
(25:57):
be monetary you know it could bedonation of items you know
welcome packs for example forthe families that live in our
refuge or it could be we haveyou know team days you know we
do have a lot of safeaccommodation that you know
people will come in and kind ofhelp us to do the garden or
decorate there's so manydifferent ways people can can
(26:18):
get involved with us as anorganization and we're always
open to new ways of workingtogether and ideas too yeah the
website does have kind of allthe details on if anybody's
interested in getting involvedand supporting us you know
that's the best place to lookand you know would be so
grateful for any support anybodycan give us
Speaker 01 (26:36):
So Sam, just going back to some of the other
assumptions that people makeabout what might be considered
to be a typical victim orsurvivor of domestic abuse.
You mentioned stats earlierthat one in four women would
experience abuse, but also onein six men would experience
domestic abuse.
I understand that TIDAS have arefuge to support male survivors
(26:58):
of domestic abuse.
Speaker 00 (26:59):
Yes, so we've always supported male victims of
domestic abuse, but a huge gapin our service was being able to
offer safe accommodation enoughsafe accommodation for male
victims so we kind of looked atan innovative way of doing that
two years ago and opened thefirst male refuge in Greater
(27:20):
Manchester, Oak House.
So we have a male safe refugethat houses six men at any one
time.
I mean, it's been a hugesuccess in the two years we've
opened the refuge and that'sbeen with support from other
Greater Manchester boroughs as akind of collaboration support
for male victims because thereisn't enough refuge space full
(27:43):
stop for any victim survivoracross the country.
But, you know, male victims,there certainly isn't many.
So that is a project we'reextremely proud of and another
step in breaking the myths and,you know, changing the narrative
on male victims of domesticabuse because they deserve
safety.
You know, they deserve to beable to move on with their lives
(28:04):
and be free from domestic abuseas well.
Speaker 01 (28:07):
And in terms of that awareness for male victims, do
you find that there are lessmale victims still coming
forward in terms of opening upabout the abuse that they've
experienced?
Speaker 00 (28:18):
Yes, in terms of if you looked at our data, we do
support more.
women than we do men howeversince opening the refuge our
referrals have increased quitesubstantially so you know we was
on a 43 percent increase fromapril to december this year
compared to the whole of lastfinancial year so i think it's a
(28:40):
little bit like chicken and eggisn't it like you you know
there's a need but until you putsomething in place and people
are aware of it and aware what'savailable that's when you start
to see actually that we'regetting more people coming
through who are asking forsupport because they know it's
there so it's just all aboutthat awareness race is an end
(29:00):
and letting victim survivorsknow that no matter what your
background no matter what kindof demographics no matter
anything you know anybody can bea victim of domestic abuse and
there is services for everybodythat may be experiencing or has
Speaker 01 (29:14):
experienced it.
I think TDAS are just reallyhelping to break down those
barriers for people to be ableto access that support in terms
of the range of services thatyou're offering.
Speaker 00 (29:23):
Yeah and it's key for us you know to being
inclusive is one of our corevalues so it's vital and there
is other specialistorganisations but and would be
better equipped to support somevictims, survivors of domestic
abuse.
And it's important that wecollaborate with them and we
partner with them to ensure thattheir needs are met
appropriately.
Speaker 01 (29:44):
Thank you, Sam, for coming in to talk to me today
and for sharing your insights.
I hope this conversation willhelp people who may be
experiencing domestic abuse orare concerned about someone who
is.
If you are listening and you doneed help in relation to the
issues we've discussed, thenplease get in touch with TDAS on
0161 872 7368 or you can alsocontact Refuge's 24-hour
(30:06):
National Domestic Abuse Helplineon 0808 2000 247.
We'll post a link to the WordsMatter video in the podcast
description and share theresources that we discussed
earlier.
Speaker 00 (30:19):
So thank you so much for having me here today to
really shine a spotlight ondomestic abuse and make sure
that we're increasing theawareness around what it is to
see the public.
Thank you for coming in, Sam.
We really appreciate your time.
Unknown (30:33):
you
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