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Measuring outcomes of safe accommodation: A rapid evidence review

Safe accommodation refers to safe, time limited accommodation for anyone escaping domestic abuse. It includes a range of settings such as refuge accommodation, specialist and dispersed accommodation, sanctuary schemes, and move-on or second-stage housing. In the short-term, support in safe accommodation provides immediate safety for victim-survivors fleeing domestic abuse, and, in the longer-term the aim is for victim survivors to be free from abuse and rebuild their lives.

The most recent national estimates from the Crime Survey for England and Wales showed that 3.8 million people aged 16 years and over experienced domestic abuse in year ending March 2025: 2.2 million females and 1.5 million males. The demand for safe accommodation for those experiencing domestic abuse persistently outweighs supply. Also, there is a shortage of safe accommodation and barriers to access for marginalised groups such as those with no recourse to public funds, or complex mental health and/or substance use need and/or disability access.

While existing evidence provides insight into demand and provision in the context of supported safe accommodation, it does not capture the outcomes experienced by survivors who access safe accommodation. Previous studies have highlighted the diversity and inconsistency of outcomes used to evaluate the impact of domestic abuse services on adults and children, and the need for a shared outcomes framework to develop a coherent national picture of what works.

In response, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) commissioned a study to assess the feasibility of establishing a shared outcomes framework for support delivered in safe accommodation. The first stage of the research was a rapid evidence review to synthesise outcomes measured to assess the impact of support for victim-survivors and their children provided in the context of safe accommodation, conducted by Dr Annie Bunce (City St George’s, University of London), Dr Katie Smith and Dr Estela Capelas Barbosa (University of Bristol).

The review constitutes a targeted update and extension of a recently published scoping review of outcomes used to measure the effectiveness of domestic abuse support services conducted by VISION researchers (Carlisle et al., 2024), which identified 426 outcome measures across 80 studies. The current rapid evidence review was restricted to forms of supported safe accommodation, the original searches were updated to include studies published from June 2022 onwards, and barriers to and facilitators of implementing a shared outcomes framework were also reviewed. Seven academic databases were searched alongside three grey literature databases and 164 organisational websites. To be included, papers were required to be UK specific, published in English and focused on interventions delivered within safe accommodation. For the outcomes element of the review, papers were only included if they reported empirically measured outcomes (i.e., outcomes based on data collected and analysed by the authors, rather than purely theoretical, proposed, or assumed outcomes). 

Across the 17 reports meeting the inclusion criteria, outcomes clustered around three core domains: safety, wellbeing, and empowerment, which map broadly onto the Domestic Violence and Abuse Core Outcomes Set. Safety outcomes were the most frequently reported, followed by mental health and psychological wellbeing, while empowerment outcomes such as independence and confidence appeared less consistently. Service-level indicators such as length of stay and move-on destinations were also widely reported but fall outside existing frameworks.

This finding that outcomes measured in the context of safe accommodation broadly cluster around three core domains of safety, wellbeing and empowerment indicates some convergence in how impact is conceptualised. However, outcomes are measured inconsistently across services, with considerable variation in what is captured and how. Furthermore, significant barriers remain to implementing a shared outcomes framework. Developing a consistent approach to outcome measurement could strengthen accountability and support learning across areas.

Recommendations

  1. Frameworks should allow for the capture of relational and subjective aspects of recovery not easily measured through conventional quantitative indicators.
  2. Any national framework must be supported by appropriate data systems, training and analytical capacity to avoid placing additional burden on frontline staff and further disadvantaging smaller (particularly by-and-for) organisations and victim-survivors from marginalised communities.
  3. Future research should focus on further development and validation of measurement tools suitable in the context of safe accommodation, with particular attention to the relevance/meaningfulness of outcomes for victim-survivors themselves. Coordination between research teams is needed to avoid duplication and ensure data collection is harmonised between stakeholders.

To download the rapid evidence review: Measuring Outcomes of Safe Accommodation: A Rapid Evidence Review 

To download the main research report: Domestic_Abuse_Safe_Accommodation_Main_Research_Report.pdf

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5th VISION annual conference: Presentations and illustrations now available

The fifth VISION annual conference was held on 7 July at The Light Auditorium in Friends House. The theme was Violence prevention in dialogue: Research and Policy.

After five years of research looking at violence prevention and the resulting health inequalities and focusing on improved measurement, policy, and practice, and delivering through a strong cross-sector partnership, we showcased our research in partnership with stakeholders Refuge, High Trees, Migrants’ Rights Network, Gloucestershire police constabulary, and Revolving Doors. In addition, we invited those working in violence prevention to critically assess our contributions and identify where further research and prioritised focus are required.

Jo Todd of Respect and Professor Gene Feder, VISION Director, reflected on 25 years of working in violence prevention as frontline practitioners and researchers. Drawing on their extensive experience, they highlighted both the progress made and the challenges that remain. While collaboration between government, academia, and the third sector has improved, longstanding silos—particularly across the health and criminal justice sectors—persist. Overcoming these barriers requires sustained commitment to relationship-building and cross-sector working.

They noted that significant progress has been made in violence prevention policy, including the publication of the government’s Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) strategy last year. However, there remains considerable interest in how the incoming Prime Minister will take forward the Labour government’s commitment to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, and what this will mean for future policy, practice, and investment.

Professor Liz Kelly from London Metropolitan University was our 2nd keynote speaker and shared her thoughts on the language and naming of violence in the 21st century. Liz highlighted that  language changes not just what we say but what we know and recognise. The words we use in the field as researchers, analysts, policymakers, officials, and practitioners matter and should be clear and grounded in victim / survivor agency and freedom.

VISION research was highlighted in three symposiums:

  • Insight: Key findings on definitions and measurement within violence prevention
    • Dr Vishal Bhavsar (Kings College London) and Professor Miranda Horvath (University of Suffolk) presented on intimate partner violence perpetration.
    • Dr Madeleine Janickyj (University College London) and Emma Pickering (Refuge) presented on technology facilitated abuse.
  • Inclusion: Violence prevention research with marginalised populations
    • Dr Alexandria Innes (City St George’s UoL), Aya Khedairi (Migrants’ Rights Network) and Professor Gargi Bhattacharyya (University College London) presented on insecure migration status. Andri and Aya discussed their project, Understanding Violence: the risks for migrants with rising far-right fascism and the resulting output, Workbook: Migrant Community Insights on Building Safety. Gargi highlighted how the far right is misusing genuine work and research and that media discussion of VAWG frequently descends into racism and incitement.
    • Dr Annie Bunce (City St George’s UoL) and Lauren Bennett and Anthony Donohoe from Revolving Doors presented their work on developing principles for co-analysis with Lived Experience.
  • Involve: A look at two ongoing, impactful pieces of VISION research with partners
    • Dr Elizabeth Cook (City St George’s UoL) and Harry Jenkins (High Trees) presented their collaborative research developing Built on Trust, a report with youth from Lambeth in London on the role of youth spaces and trusted adults in reducing young people’s exposure to violence.
    • Dr Ruth Weir (City St George’s UoL) and Sophie Jarrett (Gloucestershire Police) presented on their system-wide partnership with central and local government, police, education trusts, and the third sector to understand and prevent teenage relationship abuse (TRA). This work has resulted in the establishment of a national group on TRA and a local group wtihin Gloucestershire.

VISION co-Deputy Directors, Professor Sally McManus (City St George’s UoL) and Dr Estela Capelas Barbosa (University of Bristol) closed the conference by reflecting on the achievements of the VISION consortium and outlining priorities for the future of violence prevention research, policy, and practice. Sally highlighted the wide range of datasets, tools, resources, and publications developed by VISION over the past five years. Looking ahead, Estela emphasised the need for further research on violence affecting LGBTQI+ communities and minoritised women and children. She also stressed the importance of breaking down the persistent silos between the health and criminal justice sectors, noting that the impacts of violence extend across both systems. Effective prevention and support therefore require joined-up services, coordinated policies, and cross-sector collaboration.

Visual artists, Abigail and Chloe Baldwin, from Buttercrumble, beautifully captured the day in a series of illustrations which can be downloaded below along with the keynote and symposium presentations.

To download the presentations:

  1. Insight Symposium: Insight Symposium_Perpetrators of IPV; Insight Symposium_Tech Abuse
  2. Inclusion Symposium: Inclusion Symposium_Insecure migration status; Inclusion Symposium_Co-design of analysis principles
  3. Involve Symposium: Involve Symposium_Partnering with young people; Involve Symposium_Teenage Relationship Abuse
  4. Professor Liz Kelly, 2nd Keynote: Keynote 2_The language and naming of violence
  5. Professor Sally McManus, VISION Achievements: VISION achievements

To download the illustrations:

  1. Conference Summary
  2. 1st Keynote – Jo Todd and Gene Feder and 1st Keynote – 2nd illustration
  3. 2nd Keynote – Liz Kelly
  4. Insight Symposium – Data and Definitions
  5. Inclusion Symposium – Marginalised Populations
  6. Involve Symposium – Partnerships
  7. VISION Achievements
  8. Violence Prevention in Dialogue

VISION Policy Briefing: The role of health services in identifying and responding to teenage relationship abuse

 

 

Introduction

Teenage relationship abuse (TRA) is a growing public health concern that the current statutory framework is ill-equipped to address. Under-16s fall outside the legal definition of domestic abuse entirely, creating significant gaps in identification, referral and intervention at precisely the age when abuse most commonly begins. A Youth Endowment Fund survey of 11,000 teenagers aged 13 to 17 found that 39% of those who had been in a relationship had experienced emotional or physical abuse, yet no coherent professional or legal framework exists to respond.

This VISION Policy Briefing draws on findings from three place-based practitioner roundtables exploring TRA and conducted in Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Northumbria in 2025. As the first in a series of sector-specific policy briefs it sets out what the health sector is currently unable to do, where the opportunities lie, and what commissioners, NHS trusts and public health leads need to do differently. 

Key recommendations

  1. NHS commissioners to include TRA identification and referral in domestic abuse commissioning frameworks, explicitly covering under-16s
  2. Integration of TRA content into existing safeguarding and domestic abuse training frameworks for all health professionals working with young people, including GPs, school nurses, emergency services staff, sexual health clinicians and mental health practitioners – with outcome measurement built in
  3. Clear referral pathways from health settings into specialist TRA support to be established in every area, regardless of the young person’s age
  4. Health and Wellbeing Boards to include TRA as a public health priority in Joint Strategic Needs Assessments
  5. School health teams to be resourced and trained to deliver TRA/DA content as part of PSHE, building on the school nurse model in Oxford and aligned with the Mental Health Support Team roll out
  6. Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) to develop protocols for identifying TRA among young people presenting with mental health difficulties
  7. Extend operating hours for young people’s services

To download the VISION Policy Briefing: The role of health services in identifying and  responding to teenage relationship abuse

To cite: Weir, Ruth; Barrow-Grint, Katy (2026). VISION Policy Brief: Teenage Relationship Abuse and Health. City, University of London. Report. https://doi.org/10.25383/city.32292564.v1

For further information: Ruth at ruth.weir@citystgeorges.ac.uk

Intimate partner relationship abuse between men: An interdisciplinary seminar

 

Wednesday 17 June 2026, 13:00  – 16:45, in person only

This event is in the past.

This free, interdisciplinary seminar brings together leading voices from research, lived experience, performance, and specialist practice to examine intimate partner violence in relationships between men and consider implications for policy, research, professional practice, and wider system response.

Register here: Ticket Tailor

Despite increasing recognition that abuse within intimate male relationships is a significant public health, social justice, and service delivery issue, it remains under recognised across many systems and disciplines. Survivors frequently encounter barriers to recognition, disclosure, and support, while policy, professional training, and public discourse have historically paid limited attention to these experiences. 

This event will explore the dynamics, impacts, and structural challenges surrounding abuse in this context, and consider how research, policy, practice, and public understanding can evolve to better respond. 

The programme combines research presentations, creative performance, lived experience testimony, and expert commentary to offer a multi-dimensional exploration of the issue. The seminar will include catering and: 

  • A brief research presentation on prevalence, dynamics, barriers to recognition, and current evidence gaps from Dr Steven Maxwell 
  • A monologue from He Kept Me Safe, a research based verbatim play developed from survivor narratives exploring abuse within intimate male relationships by Dr Edgar Rodriguez-Doran 
  • A keynote contribution from broadcaster, comedian and survivor advocate James Barr, reflecting on his lived experience through comedy and the role of storytelling 
  • A talk from Tanaka Mhishi, writer and researcher in masculinity, trauma and sexual violence, exploring masculinity, trauma, violence, and engaging men in conversations about healing 
  • Brief facilitated interdisciplinary discussion on implications for research, policy, education, commissioning, service design, and practice 

This event aims to stimulate critical interdisciplinary dialogue and contribute to wider thinking on inclusive responses to domestic abuse and sexual violence. 

 

Intended Audience / Invitees 

The seminar is intended for a broad interdisciplinary audience including: 

  • Researchers and academics across social science, health, psychology, gender studies, criminology, law, public health, and related disciplines 
  • Policy makers and strategic leaders working in domestic abuse, sexual violence, health, justice, equalities, LGBTQ+ inclusion, and public policy 
  • Health and social care professionals 
  • Mental health practitioners and psychological therapists 
  • Domestic abuse and sexual violence services 
  • Policing, criminal justice, and legal professional 
  • LGBTQ+ and community sector organisations 
  • Sexual health and public health professionals 
  • Education and professional training providers 
  • Students and trainees with relevant academic or professional interests 
  • Wider stakeholders with interest in trauma, masculinity, violence prevention, and inclusive service/system design

 

Programme 

1.00 pm: Registration and Lunch 

1.30 pm: Welcome and Opening Remarks 

1.40 pm: Research Presentation: Understanding Intimate Partner Violence in Male Relationships: Prevalence, Dynamics and System Challenges 

2.00 pm: Monologue: He Kept Me Safe 

2.40 pm: Facilitated Discussion and Audience Reflection 

3.00 pm: Break 

3.15 pm: James Barr: Lived Experience, Comedy, and Public Discourse 

3.45 pm: Audience Q&A 

4.00 pm: Tanaka Mhishi: Masculinity, Trauma and Engaging Men in Conversations About Violence and Healing 

4.30 pm: Panel Discussion / Closing Audience Q&A 

4.45 pm: Close 

Join us at this free seminar, 17 June, Northampton Suite, City St George’s UoL, Clerkenwell, London, 1300 – 1645. To book your place please register here: Ticket Tailor 

Photograph provided via Adobe Stock subscription

Upcoming webinar – Left behind: People without support after experiencing violence

 

Thursday 4 June 2026, 13:00  – 14:30, online

This event is in the past.

Join VISION for a free webinar exploring groups who can be overlooked by health services, policing, and specialist support systems after experiencing violence.

Register here: TicketTailor – 4 June VISION webinar 

Many people affected by violence do not receive the help they need, for a variety of reasons. At VISION, we’ve analysed data sources such as the Crime Survey for England and Wales to better understand these gaps. In some cases, individuals do not seek medical care from hospitals or GPs for violence-related injuries, while others choose not to report incidents to the police. There are also those indirectly affected—such as people whose loved ones have experienced serious assault—who frequently go unsupported. In addition, a significant but less visible group includes victims of intimate partner violence and serious sexual assault in England and Wales who do not disclose their experiences, particularly to specialist services.

This research offers fresh insights into the risk factors, lived experiences, inequalities, and consequences of violence among those who neither seek nor receive support—the left behind.

After the short presentations, there will be a ’roundtable’ discussion with all present to look deeper into each presentation and talk about the barriers and opportunities. We want to better identify these missing populations and understand their behaviours for not seeking help and conversely for those that are looking for support but the services aren’t necessarily there.

We welcome anyone working in government, police, healthcare, academia, specialist services, education and the community and voluntary sector interested in and / or working in violence prevention and support for those affected.

Programme

Chair: Kimberly Cullen, VISION Knowledge Exchange Manager, City St George’s University of London

Disclosure of Intimate Partner Abuse and Sexual Violence to Formal Agencies and Specialist Services: Comparing Inequality Patterns, Victim Profiles, and Harms by Disclosure, Dr Hannah Manzur, VISION Research Fellow, City St George’s University of London and Dr Annie Bunce

  • Our study examines the hidden population of victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) and serious sexual assault (SSA) in England and Wales who report non-disclosure of their victimisation, particularly to specialised services. Whilst evidence-building largely relies on victim-survivors’ disclosure through help-seeking pathways and interventions, the experiences and inequality patterns for victim-survivors outside of these pathways are significantly missing from evidence and support provision. In particular, specialised services support some of the most marginalised and invisible victims of violence, yet barriers to disclosure and resource limitations pose significant challenges for both data collection and support access for these groups. The nationally representative Crime Survey for England and Wales offers a unique opportunity to analyse data on IPV and SSA victim-survivors who have not contacted specialised services or disclosed to any other formal agency (inc. The police and health services). Using pooled data (2004-2019) on past-year IPV and lifetime SSA, we compare inequality patterns (by gender, ethnicity, and migrant-status) and victim profiles (including risk-factors, victimisation characteristics, and harms) of victim-survivors based on disclosure (CSEW only, formal agency, or specialised services). Here, we reveal new insights into the risk-factors, experiences, inequalities, and impacts of violence against otherwise hidden violence victims, particularly those excluded from specialised services support.

Healthcare inequalities following violence: analysis of the Crime Survey for England and Wales 2010-2024, Dr Anastasia Fadeeva, VISION Research Fellow, City St George’s University of London

  • Although healthcare is key to supporting victims of physical violence, some do not receive it despite injuries. The present research used the Crime Survey for England and Wales (combined waves 2010-2024) to identify which victims of physical violence were less likely to receive healthcare. Despite the presence of injuries, in almost a half of the incidents, victims receive no healthcare. We examined individual and violence-related factors that were associated with not receiving healthcare following violence victimisation. 

Reporting of violence victimisation to the police in England and Wales, Dr Polina Obolenskaya, VISION Research Fellow, City St George’s University of London and Dr Annie Bunce, VISION Research Fellow, City St George’s University of London

  • Who reports violence to the police, and under what circumstances, remains a critical but under‑examined question in England and Wales. Although national victimisation surveys consistently show that more than half of violent incidents never come to the attention of police, existing research is fragmented, often focused on single forms of violence (e.g., intimate partner or sexual violence), based on small studies or non-UK contexts. By mapping multiple routes through which violence does or does not come to the attention of the criminal justice system, this research advances an understanding of the “justice gap” and offers evidence with implications for policy, prevention, and victim‑survivor support. 

Indirect victims of violence: Mental health and the close relatives of serious assault victims in England, Professor Sally McManus, VISION co-Deputy Director, City St George’s University of London and Dr Elizabeth Cook, VISION co-Investigator, City St George’s University of London

  • Violence does not just harm direct victims; its effects ripple out through families. Drawing on a representative survey of adults in England, this study found that one in twenty adults were closely related to a victim of serious assault, and that these relatives carry a disproportionate burden of poor mental health. Even after accounting for their own histories of violence, adversity, and disadvantage, close family members face significantly higher levels of depression, anxiety, and feeling unsafe: evidence that policy must recognise, and victim services be resourced to respond to, the needs of families too. 

Join us at this free webinar on 4 June, 13:00 – 14:30. To book your place please register here: TicketTailor – 4 June VISION webinar 

Photograph provided via Adobe Stock subscription

Upcoming webinar – Responding to violence in later life: Evidence, priorities, and opportunities

 

Thursday 14 May 2026, 13:00  – 14:30, online

This event is in the past.

The VISION research consortium invites you to a free webinar looking at violence and abuse experienced by those in their later years. What is the current evidence of exposure and health outcomes? What should the violence prevention research and policy priorities be for an aging population? And what are the opportunities to improve our knowledge about this issue?

The event will be chaired by Danny Tatlow, the Research and Policy Officer at Hourglass, the UK’s only charity focused on the abuse and neglect of older people. 

The presenters include:

Patterns of violence and discrimination exposure across the life course and their associations with health in later life, Dr Anastasia Fadeeva, VISION Research Fellow, City St George’s, University of London

  • Dr Fadeeva will share results from her study which used data from wave 11 of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, which included information about Life History events, such as multiple types of violence and discrimination over the life course. Distinct patterns of violence and discrimination experiences were identified using the Latent Class analysis, followed by analysis of the associations between the profiles of violence experiences and health outcomes.

Listening to Older Survivors: Informing Support and Interventions for Domestic Abuse in Later Life, Dr Vasiliki Orgeta, Associate Professor, University College London

  • Dr Orgeta will present quantitative and qualitative research on psychological trauma and abuse in older women. She will explore their experiences and the perspectives of professionals supporting them, highlighting barriers such as stigma, isolation, and lack of recognition. The findings are informing a psychological advocacy intervention for older women, funded by the NIHR and led by UCL, designed to provide tailored, long-term support that promotes safety, autonomy, and wellbeing.

Later life adversities and their relationship with health outcomes: evidence from Wales, Dr Kat  Ford, Research Fellow, Bangor University and Professor Karen Hughes, Public Health Wales

Supporting older survivors of Sexual Violence- barriers and good practice, Amanda Warburton, Independent Researcher

  • Amanda will present findings from her MA in Domestic Violence and Sexual Abuse dissertation study which gathered the views of professionals who have supported older survivors of acute sexual Violence. The presentation will cover barriers to seeking support and highlight good practice to enable older survivors on their journey to recovery. 

This webinar will be of interest to stakeholders involved in violence prevention research, policy and practice who work with older people and / or are interested in lifecourse violence and abuse prevention.

Join us at this free webinar on 14 May, 13:00 – 14:30. To book your place and receive the Teams link, please email VISION_Management_Team@citystgeorges.ac.uk

Photograph provided by Age Without Limits image library

VISION responds to Parliamentary, government & non-government consultations

Consultation, evidence and inquiry submissions are an important part of our work at VISION. Responding to Parliamentary, government and non-government organisation consultations ensures that a wide range of opinions and voices are factored into the policy decision making process. As our interdisciplinary research addresses violence and how it cuts across health, crime and justice and the life course, we think it is important to take the time to answer any relevant call and to share our insight and findings to support improved policy and practice. We respond as VISION, the Violence & Society Centre, and sometimes in collaboration with others. Below are the links to our published responses and evidence from June 2022.

  1. UK Parliament – International Development Committee – Inquiry: Women, Peace and Security. Our submission was published in March 2026
  2. UK Parliament – Public Bill Committee – Call for evidence: Crime and Policing Bill. Our submission was published in 2025
  3. UK Parliament (Library) – POSTNote – Approved Work: Violence Against Women and Girls in schools and among children & young people. Two VISION reports were referenced in their POSTNote published in August 2025
  4. UK Parliament – Public Accounts Committee – Inquiry: Tackling Violence against Women and Girls (VAWG). Our submission was published in April 2025
  5. UK Parliament – House of Lords Select Committee on Social Mobility Policy – Call for Evidence: Exploring how education and work opportunities can be better integrated to improve social mobility across the UK. Our submission was published in 2025
  6. UK Parliament – Women and Equalities Committee – Inquiry: Community Cohesion. Our submission was published in February 2025
  7. UK Parliament – Call for evidence on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. Our submission was published in February 2025
  8. UK Parliament – Public Accounts Committee – Inquiry: Use of Artificial Intelligence in Government. Our submission was published in January 2025
  9. UK Parliament – Public Accounts Committee – Inquiry: Tackling Homelessness. Our submission with Dr Natasha Chilman was published in January 2025. See the full report
  10. Home Office – Legislation consultation: Statutory Guidance for the Conduct of Domestic Homicide Reviews. Our submission was published on the VISION website in July 2024
  11. UK Parliament – Women and Equalities Committee – Inquiry: The rights of older people. Our submission was published in November 2023
  12. UK Parliament  – Women and Equalities Committee – Inquiry: The impact of the rising cost of living on women. Our submission was published in November 2023
  13. UK Parliament – Women and Equalities Committee – Inquiry: The escalation of violence against women and girls. Our submission published in September 2023
  14. Home Office – Legislation consultation: Machetes and other bladed articles: proposed legislation (submitted response 06/06/2023). Government response to consultation and summary of public responses was published in August 2023
  15. Welsh Government – Consultation: National action plan to prevent the abuse of older people. Summary of the responses published in April 2023
  16. Race Disparity Unit (RDU) – Consultation: Standards for Ethnicity Data (submitted response 30/08/2022). Following the consultation, a revised version of the data standards was published in April 2023
  17. UK Parliament – The Home Affairs Committee – Call for evidence: Human Trafficking. Our submission was published in March 2023
  18. UN expert – Call for evidence: Violence, abuse and neglect in older people. Our submission was published in February 2023
  19. UK Parliament – The Justice and Home Affairs Committee – Inquiry: Family migration. Our submission was published in September 2022 and a report was published following the inquiry in February 2023
  20. Home Office – Consultation: Controlling or Coercive behaviour Statutory Guidance. Our submission was published in June 2022

For further information, please contact us at VISION_Management_Team@city.ac.uk

Photo by JaRiRiyawat from Adobe Stock downloads (licensed)

VISION researcher receives funding for secondary data analysis

Dr Annie Bunce, Research Fellow at VISION, received funding from the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy for her application, Exploring resilience, self-empowerment and wellbeing outcomes of women referred to specialist domestic abuse counselling services.

With the support of Dr Estela Capelas Barbosa, VISION co-Deputy Director, and in collaboration with Sarah Davidge, Head of Membership, Research and Evaluation at Women’s Aid, Annie will investigate whether and how receiving counselling from a specialist domestic abuse (DA) support service is associated with change in wellbeing.

She will analyse quantitative data from national DA charity, Women’s Aid, which includes information on various aspects of victim-survivors’ wellbeing at the start, during, and end of accessing services. Data analysis will reveal whether victim-survivors who receive counselling experience greater improvements in their wellbeing than those who receive other community-based services.

Annie will also examine whether counselling may be associated with greater wellbeing gains for some groups than others, and whether change in wellbeing is associated with the type/s of abuse experienced and other services received.

The analysis will show which factors influence the effect of counselling on changes in wellbeing the most, and which wellbeing indicators are most improved following counselling.

Findings will be shared via an academic report, blog, policy briefing, webinar and conference presentations.

The research will help to improve understanding of the relationship between counselling and wellbeing in the context of DA, feed into Women’s Aid’s ongoing work to ensure they are measuring the things most important to victim-survivors when it comes to their wellbeing and promote consistency in measuring wellbeing-related outcomes across DA services more widely.

Please contact Annie at annie.bunce@citystgeorges.ac.uk for further information.

Image from Adobe Stock subscription.

The establishment of the National Working Group on Teenage Relationship Abuse

Teenage relationship abuse remains one of the least understood forms of domestic abuse, particularly among those under 16 years of age, who fall outside the statutory definition within the 2021 Domestic Abuse Act.

To close the gap between research, policy, and frontline practice and ensure that young people are no longer overlooked, VISION researcher and co-Deputy Director of the Violence and Society Centre at City St George’s, Dr Ruth Weir, co-established the National Working Group on Teenage Relationship Abuse with Gloucestershire Deputy Chief Constable Katy Barrow-Grint in 2024. The group consists of researchers, practitioners, policymakers, third sector organisations, and young people with lived experience of teenage abuse from across the health and justice sectors for a holistic understanding of the problem.

Membership has grown over the two years and now includes the Home Office, Department for Education, the Cabinet Office, the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s Office, College of Policing, local government (Islington Council), universities (City St George’s, Essex, Lancashire), NHS bodies, multiple police forces such as Thames Valley and the London Metropolitan Police, school trusts, and charities like SafeLives, Respect, Youth Realities, Changing Relations, and Victim Support just to name a few.

The group brings their expertise to shape ongoing national conversations on how teenage relationship abuse is defined, recognised, and responded to, particularly for those under 16.

Please contact Ruth at ruth.weir@citystgeorges.ac.uk for further information.

Exploring survivor wellbeing after abuse: A joint VISION and VAMHN symposium

 

Professor Sian Oram

By Sian Oram

In November 2025, the VISION consortium and the Violence, Abuse and Mental Health Network (VAMHN) co-hosted a symposium at King’s College London’s Science Gallery. The event brought together 40 researchers, survivor advocates, providers, and policymakers to explore what meaningful support for survivor wellbeing looks like – and what it will take to deliver it.

The day was structured around two core sessions. The morning focused on VAMHN’s recently refreshed Theory of Change (ToC) and the network’s strategic priorities for the next phase. The afternoon featured a symposium of short talks and group discussions, including exploration of how survivor wellbeing is defined, supported, and measured across clinical, community, and policy contexts.

Across both sessions, a powerful theme emerged: that systems must be reshaped around the lives, needs, and priorities of survivors, not the other way around.

Reimagining the Pathways to Change

The morning roundtable discussions affirmed the relevance of the four pathways within VAMHN’s theory of change: improving understanding of recovery and wellbeing; strengthening psychological and support services; increasing survivor leadership and participation; and influencing policy and systems.

Attendees strongly welcomed a shift away from crisis-driven, risk-based models toward a more holistic, strengths-based approach to survivor wellbeing. There was broad support for launching a survivor-informed outcomes framework, co-designed to work across research, commissioning, and frontline services. Others emphasised the importance of cross-sector knowledge exchange, meaningful survivor leadership (not just consultation), and reducing fragmentation in how services respond.

There was widespread support for VAMHN’s ambition to launch an Evaluation Lab to support small and specialist services with participatory, trauma-informed evaluation, and an ask for the network to take a greater role in amplifying the voices of smaller NGOs in national policy spaces.

What Does Meaningful Support Look Like?

The afternoon symposium featured five speakers who reflected on evidence, practice, and lived experience. Across talks on psychological interventions, survivor voice, systems design, and clinicians as survivors, a call emerged for more responsive and humane systems. Key takeaways included:

  • Survivor wellbeing is relational and systemic, not only clinical or individual. Responses must hold space for complexity, intersectionality, and evolving needs over time.
  • Continuity, trust, and listening matter. Survivors spoke of exhausting experiences of re-telling their stories; a “passport” system or shared record was suggested to avoid re-traumatisation.
  • Support should be built around people – not service structures. Attendees reflected on the need to prioritise basic needs, reduce referral fatigue, and enable survivors to steer their own support journeys.
  • Frontline practitioners need care too. Recognising and supporting professionals with lived experience of abuse is vital.

Participants urged deeper collaboration across sectors and systems. There was strong appetite for developing shared approaches to wellbeing, meaningful evaluation, and ethical survivor involvement across VISION partners.

Looking Ahead

This event marked an important milestone in aligning survivor-centred priorities across the VISION Consortium and VAMHN. We are grateful to everyone who contributed their time, insights, and lived experience to this conversation.

For further information, please contact Sian at sian.oram@kcl.ac.uk

To access the resource: Supporting Survivor Wellbeing After Domestic Abuse Resources

Cover photo supplied via Adobe Stock subscription.