Welsh Women’s Aid welcomes Domestic Abuse Commissioner appointment and urges greater focus on prevention of abuse.
In response to today’s Westminster Government announcement of the new Domestic Abuse Commissioner appointment, Welsh Women’s Aid CEO Eleri Butler said:
“I am delighted Nicole Jacobs has been appointed Domestic Abuse Commissioner for England and Wales. Having previously worked alongside Nicole in London, I know firsthand Nicole’s dedication and commitment to ensuring survivors’ experiences are central to changing systems, services and partnerships to better meet survivors needs and to prevent domestic abuse from escalating.
“We also welcome the appointment of a Commissioner who has real knowledge of the domestic abuse sector, and Welsh Women’s Aid is committed to working with the Commissioner to share learning from Wales and help transform state, services and communities response to domestic abuse.
“In Wales, our Government has already legislated to prevent violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence and improve public services responses to abuse. Welsh Women’s Aid is also piloting a whole system approach to prevent all forms of violence against women and create real change that lasts in local communities.
“Ending domestic abuse is possible, with sufficient political will and resources. We want to see both UK and Welsh Governments commit to placing the experiences of survivors, particularly those most marginalised and discriminated against by state policies, at the centre of our response. It’s also vital that the state and services not only focus on ensuring all survivors have support which meets their needs and on stopping the abuse of individual perpetrators, but also create the structural and institutional change needed to dismantle the oppressions and inequalities women and girls face every day, in order to end domestic abuse for good.”