Domestic Violence and Abuse

Domestic violence and abuse is the emotional, financial, physical, psychological or sexual abuse of someone by a person they know. This could be a partner, ex-partner, friend or family member. 

Domestic abuse is not just about violence, it can also be about someone you know trying to control your life. Living with domestic abuse can have long lasting impact on physical and mental well-being for you and those who live with you. 

Anyone can be subjected to abuse, regardless of their social background, age, gender, religion, sexuality or ethnicity.  

If you are in fear of a partner, ex-partner or member of your family, you might be experiencing domestic abuse. This can include:

  • Calling you names or putting you down in front of others
  • Making you feel bad about yourself
  • Threats to kill or harm you, your family or pets
  • Physical or sexual assaults
  • Preventing you from seeing friends or family 
  • Withholding or restriction access to money 
  • Withholding your phone 

Domestic Abuse can manifest itself online. This could be monitoring your social media, your emails, in home devices, what you are searching online & location monitoring.

Hacking is a criminal offence under the Computer Misuse Act and can be reported through Action Fraud.

To help you through what may feel like a very scary situation Nottinghamshire Police have pulled together some tips to help you become more secure.

Domestic violence is rarely a one-off event and physical violence often escalates in frequency and severity over time.

Children living with domestic violence and abuse are more likely than other children to be directly abused themselves. Children witnessing domestic violence and abuse are at risk of being harmed emotionally and psychologically and their education and behaviour and development may also suffer.

It is not always easy to believe that you are in an abusive relationship, but acknowledging that you are is an important step in preventing and stopping the violence and abuse.

No matter who you are, you have the right to live free from violence and abuse.

Bassetlaw District Council and Newark & Sherwood District Council have produced their own Domestic Violence Strategy on how it will work to tackle domestic violence. You can find more information about the strategy from the Bassetlaw, Newark and Sherwood Domestic Violence Strategic Group.

Council Policies and Procedures


Last Updated on Wednesday, December 6, 2023