Statistics from Domestic Homicide Reviews
This report summarises information from Domestic Homicide Reviews (DHRs) which went before the Home Office Quality Assurance Panel for the 12 months between September 2021 and October 2022. DHRs are multi-agency reviews into the deaths of adults which may have resulted from violence, abuse, or neglect by a person to whom they were related or with whom they were, or had been, in an intimate personal relationship. Reviews also take place where a victim took their own life (died by suicide) where there is a known history of domestic abuse.
This report provides information for each of the three types of victims: familial, intimate partner, or who died by suicide. It summarises learning the reviews identify as areas which can be improved. It also looks at recommendations in the reviews and family contributions to the reviews.
Overview
- In the 129 DHRs reviewed there are 132 victims: 24% had a familial relationship with the perpetrator(s), for 50% the relationship with the perpetrator was partner or ex-partner. Twenty six per cent were victims who died by suicide.
- The average age of familial abuse victims was 55 years, older than the average age of familial perpetrators which was 35 years. Intimate partner victims were on average younger (38 years) and also younger than preparators (43 years). The average age of victims who died by suicide was 36 years.
- Where victims were in an intimate partner relationship or who had died by suicide, 86% and 88% respectively were female. This was different where there was a familial relationship where 53% of the victims were female.
- Considering nationality, 69% of familial victims were British; 80% of intimate partner victims were British and where the victims died by suicide 91% were British.
Victims
- The DHRs include assessments of the vulnerabilities of victims, considering illicit drug use, mental ill-health, physical disability, pregnancy, problem alcohol use, as well as any other vulnerability. Overall, 70% of all victims were considered to have at least one vulnerability. Where victims were familial 47% were considered to have at least one vulnerability, this was 68% for intimate partner victims and 94% for victims who had died by suicide.
- The two vulnerabilities where there were the largest differences between the types of victim were mental ill-health (29% of familial victims and 49% of suicide victims) and physical disability (21% of familial and 2% of suicide victims).
- Fifty two per cent of all victims had been the target of an abuser before. In familial relationships this was 22%, for intimate relationships 56% and for victims who had died by suicide it was 70%.
- The DHRs considered whether victims had experienced aggravating factors: coercive control, digital stalking, financial abuse, forced marriage, honour-based violence, immigration issues, or physical stalking. At least one aggravating factor was identified for 26% of familial victims, for 78% of intimate partner victims and for 88% of victims who died by suicide. The most common aggravating factors were coercive control and financial abuse.
Perpetrators
- As with victims, vulnerabilities were recorded for perpetrators and 77% were considered as having at least one, with mental ill-health, problem alcohol use and illicit drug use being the most common.
- Forty per cent of perpetrators were managed or supervised by mental health services and 32% by Probation.
- Sixty four per cent of perpetrators had also abused previous partners or family members. And 56% of perpetrators were known to agencies as an abuser.
Continues at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/key-findings-from-analysis-of-domestic-homicide-reviews/key-findings-from-analysis-of-domestic-homicide-reviews-september-2021-to-october-2022-accessible