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Gendered violence and epistemic injustice in Iran: women’s civic aspirations for justice

Iranian women perceive themselves as active participants in overcoming barriers that have historically silenced them. Their perspectives on eliminating violence against women (VAW), with a particular focus on how they challenge the structural and epistemic injustices that underpin such violence, are analysed in a recent publication, Gendered violence and epistemic injustice in Iran: women’s civic aspirations for justice.

In their article, Dr Nadia Aghtaie (University of Bristol), Dr Ladan Hashemi (VISION Senior Research Fellow at City St George’s University of London), and Fatemeh Babakhani (Mehre Shams Afarid, Non-Governmental Domestic Violence Organisation for Women and Children, Urmia, Iran), draw on a qualitative, purposive voluntary sample via an anonymous Instagram survey, chosen for its accessibility and reach among women and girls in Iran. A total of 453 respondents aged 16–59 answered the open-ended question, “Write your views and suggestions regarding violence against women and how to eliminate it,” and their responses were thematically analysed. While this method enabled wide participation, it also introduced likely sampling bias towards internet users—particularly younger, urban, and tech-savvy participants.

Participants identified a wide range of violence, including emotional, physical, sexual, coercive control, and street harassment. However, the most prominent themes that emerged were the need for raising awareness, among both women and men, about what constitutes violence, and the demand for comprehensive legal reforms to address and prevent VAW.

Many responses indicated a desire to reshape cultural and religious norms that have historically contributed to women’s marginalisation. The participants’ narratives highlighted how women’s experiences of violence are frequently dismissed, minimised, or rendered unintelligible in dominant public discourses. By articulating their understandings of violence and proposing solutions, these women actively resisted such injustice and asserted themselves as credible knowers.

Overall, respondents acknowledged the intersecting structural, cultural and religious norms that perpetuate VAW in Iran. Yet their responses were not solely diagnostic; they were also future-oriented and hopeful. They strongly believed that education, awareness-raising and legal reforms are catalysts for change and emphasised the right to be heard and valued as credible sources on their views on VAW.

To download the paper: Gendered violence and epistemic injustice in Iran: women’s civic aspirations for justice

To cite: Aghtaie, N., Hashemi, L. & Babakhani, F. Gendered violence and epistemic injustice in Iran: women’s civic aspirations for justice. Humanit Soc Sci Commun (2026). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-026-06952-3

For further information: Please contact Ladan at ladan.hashemi@citystgeorges.ac.uk

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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.

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Non-intimate femicide in England and Wales: A ‘continua’ approach

A key pledge in the Labour Party’s 2024 election manifesto was to halve violence against women and girls (VAWG) over the next ten years. It is well known that violence and abuse experienced by women and girls incorporates a multitude of contexts outside of (as well as within) family and intimate relationships, therefore, any strategy aimed at significantly reducing VAWG will need to extend beyond the domestic sphere, including lethal violence. Despite important advances in domestic homicide (DH) prevention in recent years, 55 per cent of adult women (16+ years) killed across England and Wales were not categorized as DH.

Dr Caroline Miles (University of Manchester) and VISION Co-Investigator Dr Elizabeth A Cook (City St George’s University of London) specifically address the killing of women and girls outside of family and intimate relationships, referred to here as ‘non-intimate femicide’ (NIF), in their recently published article, Non-intimate femicide in England and Wales: A ‘continua’ approach.

There have been numerous high-profile killings of women and girls by male strangers in the UK over the past few year (for example, Sarah Everard, Sabina Nessa, sisters Nicole Smallman and Bibaa Henry, and three girls, Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice Dasilva Aguiar killed in Southport). These cases attracted high levels of public attention as is often the outcome of intense media interest in particular femicides. Attracting less media attention are the killings of women and girls by men with whom they are acquainted but not intimately connected to (or in some cases, not recognized as such). There is currently a dearth of data, knowledge and policy aimed at preventing NIF, a problem which Caroline and Elizabeth strive to redress.

The research underpinning this article derives from the first exclusive study of NIF in England and Wales, presenting a statistical analysis of the victim, suspect and incident characteristics for all cases involving women who were killed by non-intimate partners or family members between 2002 and 2022. Using Homicide Index data for England and Wales (2002–2022), the researchers provide original insight into the victim, perpetrator and incident characteristics in NIF cases, and reveal important differences between intimate and NIF, as well as high levels of missing or poorly recorded data. They argue for a more accurate recording of NIF, alongside a ‘continua thinking’ approach to femicide research, which documents the killing of all women and girls across a range of intimate and non-intimate contexts. Caroline and Elizabeth write that by adopting a ‘continua of violence’ approach to femicide, which recognizes how ‘gender links violence at different points on a scale’, a nuanced and inclusive understanding of femicide can be developed that is not restricted to those categorized as ‘intimate’ or ‘domestic’.

If the current UK Labour Government are to succeed in their 2024 pledge to halve VAWG over a ten-year period, it is crucial that they focus on the whole continuum of lethal VAWG, including those killed by strangers and people known to them in some capacity who are not intimate partners or family members. NIF accounts for substantial proportions of female homicide victimization and although a key focus in recent years has been on learning more about the contexts of DH, the pathways leading to and circumstances surrounding the killing of women outside of intimate and kin relationships remain to a large extent unknown. 

Recommendation

Recent work to improve the recording of femicide and measure sex/gender motivations acknowledges some non-intimate contexts of femicide; however, in order to fully understand the gendered contexts of NIF, it is essential to improve the quality of data recording for all forms of femicide and to mainstream sex/gender motivation data collection across the whole continuum of femicide.

To download the paper: Non-intimate femicide in England and Wales: A ‘continua’ approach

To cite: Caroline Miles, Elizabeth A Cook, Non-intimate femicide in England and Wales: A ‘continua’ approach, The British Journal of Criminology, 2026;, azag005, https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azag005

For further information: Please contact Elizabeth (Lizzie) at elizabeth.cook@citystgeorges.ac.uk

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Re-imagining responses to gender-based violence

 

Dr Olumide Adisa

VISION Co-Investigator, Dr Olumide Adisa, has written a personal blog, Behind the book, highlighting her journey behind the scenes writing, compiling, and publishing her first edited book, Tackling Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence: A Systems Approach.

In the blog, Olumide discusses her drive to have a meaningful impact in the fight against gender-based violence. Her enthusiasm, advocacy and growing expertise for systems theory and complex systems approaches combined with ongoing work across different systems and with various collaborators led to the project and was an invaluable experience.

For further information, please contact Olumide at olumide.adisa@citystgeorges.ac.uk

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“United to End Sextortion”: Launching a New Animation for the 16 Days of Activism

By Dr Nadia Aghtaie, Associate Professor in Criminology, University of Bristol

Sextortion is one of the fastest-growing – and least understood – forms of abuse facing young people today. Yet it is still rarely discussed in schools, families or policy debates.

Our new animation, launched as part of the UN 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, aims to start those conversations in a way that is accessible, sensitive and grounded in research.

What do we mean by “sextortion”?

We use sextortion to describe situations where someone threatens to share explicit, intimate or embarrassing sexual images without consent in order to force a person to do something – often to send more images, carry out sexual acts, hand over money, or provide other favours (see Ray & Henry 2024; Wolak et al. 2017).

There is still no consistent terminology. Different organisations talk about “image-based sexual abuse”, “online blackmail”, “sexual extortion”, or “sexual corruption”. This lack of shared language makes it harder for young people, parents, teachers and professionals to recognise what is happening and to know where to turn for help.

Why a sextortion animation for young people?

Sextortion doesn’t affect all young people in the same way. Research by NSPCC points to gendered patterns in both who is targeted and what is demanded: boys are often targeted by organised cybercrime gangs demanding money, while girls are more likely to face pressure from people they know – peers, partners or ex-partners – to share more nudes or agree to unwanted sexual acts. Whatever the context, sextortion can be devastating, combining sexual abuse, psychological control, financial exploitation and, for many, intense shame and fear.

These are also experiences that are very hard to talk about. Shame, fear of being blamed, worries about family reactions or community honour, and concerns around immigration status can all create silence. Animation gives us a different way in: it lets us tell a story that feels recognisable without identifying any individual, show clearly that victims are not to blame, signpost routes to support, and open up honest but non-graphic conversations in classrooms, youth groups and families. By launching this animation during the 16 Days of Activism, we place sextortion firmly within global efforts to end violence against women and girls, while recognising that boys and gender-diverse young people are affected too.

From Iran-focused campaign to a wider audience

The initial animations (Coercive Control, Economic Abuse, Active Bystander and Technology Facilitated Abuse) grew out of a wider project on violence against women and girls (VAWG) that began with a focus on Iran. The aim was to design a research-based, evidence-informed animated campaign, United to End Violence Against Women and Girls, to raise awareness of different forms of VAWG and to support intergenerational conversations that might help reduce violence over time.

Although the early work centred on Iranian contexts and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, our previous studies, together with conversations across NGO networks and a school in the UK, quickly showed that these issues are relevant beyond national borders.

Collaboration, creativity and cultural sensitivity

The animations have been funded by VISION Consortium and Bristol ESRC Accelerator Award and shaped by a multidisciplinary team including academic colleagues from City St George University (Dr Ladan Hashemi & Professor Sally McManus); the University of Bristol (Associate Professor Nadia Aghtaie); Leeds Beckett University (Dorreh Khatibi-Hill); Goldsmiths (Dr Atlas Torbati) and University for the Creative Arts (Professor Birgitta Hosea). We have worked closely with two NGOs as advisory partners and an animation team:

  • An Iran-based NGO working with women from diverse backgrounds and running specialist programmes for survivors of gender-based violence. We do not name the organisation here for security reasons, as this could limit how widely the animations can be shared.
  • IKWRO, a London-based charity supporting women and girls from Middle Eastern and North African communities who are facing “honour”-based abuse, forced marriage and other forms of VAWG.
  • “Resilient Anonymous Creators”: An animation team based in Iran. For security reasons, we cannot name them publicly. The name “resilient anonymous creators” is a reflection of both their creativity and the structural barriers they are forced to navigate. We are deeply grateful for their courage, commitment and artistry; this work is only possible because of them.

Ultimately, our goal is simple: to give young people, and the adults who support them, a starting point – a shared language, a shared story and a shared commitment to challenging sextortion and other forms of digital-based abuse wherever they occur.

Link to Women’s Research Hub YouTube Channel 

Link to Women’s Research Hub Instagram Account  

For further information, please contact Ladan at ladan.hashemi@citystgeorges.ac.uk

Confronting ‘Honour‘-Based Abuse: Reflections on IKWRO’s 2025 Conference

By Ladan Hashemi, Senior Lecturer in Sociology of Health and Health Policy at City St George’s University of London  

VISION was proud to sponsor their second collaboration with IKWRO (Women’s Rights Organisation) and host their annual conference. This year’s theme was Confronting ‘Honour‘-Based Abuse (HBA) in Policy, Technology, and Collective Action and held at City St George’s, University of London on 22nd October 2025. 

The event brought together around a hundred survivor advocates, academics, frontline practitioners, and policymakers to critically examine urgent responses to HBA in today’s rapidly evolving world. 

The conference featured three panels examining the flagship “Crime, Not Culture” campaign, the growing role of technology and media in shaping harm, and the resilience and leadership of survivors and community advocates. Throughout the day, speakers and attendees returned to a central question: How do we ensure HBA is recognised and treated as a serious crime rather than dismissed or misunderstood as ‘culture’?

Narratives, Evidence, and the Power of Speaking Out

The day opened with powerful survivor testimonies – deeply personal accounts of control, coercion and systemic failures. These stories underscored the  need for meaningful training across policing, healthcare and the family courts. As one panel chair reflected, “It’s not that the government lacks the budget. It’s about priorities. Women from ethnic minorities are not a priority.” The consequences of this neglect, she noted, echo across public services, placing a substantial and avoidable burden on institutions such as the NHS and the police.

Scholars challenged common assumptions about “culture” and emphasised the importance of evidence-informed policy. Their discussions invited the audience to interrogate the ways colonial narratives have shaped understandings of honour, family, and gender norms. 

Technology, Media, and Emerging Threats

The second panel explored the fast-changing digital landscape. Speakers examined how technology-facilitated abuse, sextortion, online misogyny, and surveillance increasingly interact with HBA. The panel highlighted that marginalised women and girls often face compounded risks: gendered, racialised, and technologically amplified. 

Two short animations produced by the Women’s Research Hub team in collaboration with VISION, on HBA and sextortion were screened during the session. These visual narratives helped ground the discussion in the lived realities of young people navigating online harms – showing not just the risks, but also how digital tools can be used to educate, empower, and support.

One speaker captured the spirit of the day: “It seems it wasn’t enough to be oppressed by patriarchal systems; now we also face the same inequalities reflected back at us through AI and social media.” 

Collective Action and Pathways to Change 

The final panel focused on resilience and community action. Speakers discussed the importance of survivor leadership, culturally informed practice, and training that centres real voices rather than “death by PowerPoint.” Their reflections highlighted that effective change relies on collaboration between organisations, communities, and those with lived experience. 

The conference closed with remarks from Jess Phillips MP, who reinforced the urgent need to strengthen protections and ensure survivors are heard and believed. Her contribution was a fitting conclusion to a day centred on solidarity, listening, and the collective responsibility to challenge harmful practices and support those affected.

One of the quilts created by survivors of ‘honour’-based abuse and IKWRO

A Day of Reflection and Resolve 

The event showcased what happens when survivors, activists, academics, and practitioners come together with a shared purpose. Across panels, one message was clear: understanding and preventing ‘Honour‘-Based Abuse requires research, policy attention, resources, and above all, a commitment to centring the voices of those most affected. 

VISION was proud to support this important gathering for a second time sparking further conversations about how evidence and collaboration can drive meaningful, long-lasting change.

Key to the event was the organisation and support of VISION’s Knowledge Exchange Manager, Kimberly Cullen and the IKWRO conference organising committee. 

For further information, please contact Ladan at ladan.hashemi@citystgeorges.ac.uk

Photography supplied by IKWRO

New Animated Campaign Raises Awareness of ‘Honour’-Based Abuse

By Ladan Hashemi, Senior Lecturer in Sociology of Health and Health Policy at City St George’s University of London  

A new animation created by the Women’s Research Hub in collaboration with VISION aims to shed light on ‘Honour’-Based Abuse (HBA), a pervasive form of violence targeting women and girls. Informed by research and survey data on violence against women in Iran, this is the fifth animation in the Hub’s series on gender-based violence (GBV). The survey underpinning this work was designed by Fatima Babakhani, CEO of the safe house Mehre Shams Afarid in Iran.

HBA is widespread both in Iran and globally. Studies indicate that thousands of women and girls in Iran experience coercion, forced marriage, and other forms of abuse in the name of “honour.” Globally, HBA affects communities across the Middle East, South Asia, North Africa, and diaspora populations worldwide, often remaining hidden due to social stigma and cultural justifications. While reliable statistics are difficult to obtain because of underreporting, research shows that the consequences are severe: psychological trauma, physical violence, and, in extreme cases, death. The Centre for Human Rights in Iran reported that in 2024 at least 179 women in Iran were killed — roughly a woman every two days — a significant proportion of them as a result of so-called ‘honour’ killings. 

The animation presents real-life narratives, capturing the lived experiences of women subjected to HBA. Through carefully constructed scenes, it depicts situations such as family-imposed restrictions on women’s clothing and mobility, threats, humiliation, forced and child marriage, and the devastating consequences of upholding “honour” through coercion, including physical violence and ‘honour’-based killings. 

Some of the impactful transcripts featured in the animation include: 

Forced marriage: “They said there had been too many rumours about her, so her family forced her to marry.”

‘Honour’– Based Killing: “His brothers came, one by one, saying: ‘You’ve protected your honour. You’ve spared us all the shame.”

The animation brings these testimonies to life with a sensitive and empathetic approach, allowing viewers to understand the psychological and social dynamics of HBA, as well as its human impact. It emphasises that ‘honour’ is never a justification for violence: “No one is another person’s ‘honour’. ‘Honour’ is lost when we turn to violence — not when a woman chooses to live her life on her own terms.” 

The campaign also provides clear guidance for bystanders and communities on how to respond: 

  1. Avoid judging others’ private lives — everyone has the right to make choices about their body, relationships, and lifestyle. 
  2. Support victims of HBA without blame, and do not leave them isolated. 
  3. Be mindful of language: words like “honour,” “shame,” and “purity” can reinforce harmful norms. 
  4. Do not share private information or images that could endanger someone. 
  5. Speak up if you believe someone is at risk and contact trusted organisations. 

The animation was produced in collaboration with animators in Iran, experts supporting women affected by HBA in Iran, Fatima Babakhani, and the UK-based NGO IKWRO, which supports victims of HBA in the UK. 

The research team included colleagues Dr Ladan Hashemi and Professor Sally McManus from City St George’s University of London; Associate Professor Nadia Aghtaie at the University of Bristol; Dr Atlas Torbati from Goldsmiths University; Professor Birgitta Hosea from the Animation Research Centre at the University for the Creative Arts; and Dorreh Khatibi-Hill from Leeds Beckett University. The project was funded by the UKPRP VISION Consortium and the ESRC Impact Acceleration Award at the University of Bristol.

The animation will be officially launched on the Women’s Research Hub Instagram page during the 16 Days of Activism Against GBV, providing an important opportunity to reach a global audience and raise awareness of HBA. Ladan and colleagues will also be discussing the campaign at a free lunchtime webinar on Monday, 8 December. For further information and to register for the Teams link, please see Webinar: Using animation to campaign against VAWG.

Previous animations in the series have been viewed hundreds of thousands of times, narrated in multiple languages as well as subtitled, and it has been used in classrooms and at other events. We encourage its widespread use to improve awareness, and one animation in the series provides bystanders with potential strategies for safe intervention. 

By combining rigorous research, authentic survivor narratives, and creative storytelling, this animation series offers a powerful tool for raising awareness and driving action against GBV. It is a vital reminder that combating GBV requires both evidence-informed strategies and a commitment to amplifying the voices of those most affected. 

Link to Women’s Research Hub YouTube Channel 

Link to Women’s Research Hub Instagram Account  

For further information, please contact Ladan at ladan.hashemi@citystgeorges.ac.uk

Practitioner in Residence: Navigating complex cases in Domestic Abuse-Related Death reviews

 

Danielle Sharp is the founder and Chief Executive of the Centre for Safer Society, an organisation dedicated to supporting services in designing evidence-based responses to reduce violence, abuse, and harm. Through the Centre, Danielle conducts service evaluations, develops impact-driven strategies for organisations working to end violence and abuse, and serves as an Independent Chair for statutory Domestic Abuse-Related Death reviews – work that brings her face-to-face with the families of those who have been killed or died by suicide.

For most of her career, Danielle has worked in the domestic abuse and violence against women and girls (VAWG) sector. She began in frontline roles supporting young people and families before moving into strategic positions developing and commissioning evidence-based local responses to domestic abuse. Her work then expanded to national level at SafeLives, where as Head of the Knowledge Hub she led projects such as the Home Office One Front Door pilot, and Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC) national oversight.

It is through her work as an Independent Chair for Domestic Abuse-Related Death reviews that Danielle identified the practice challenge that will form the focus of her Practitioner in Residence (PiR) research at the Violence and Society Centre (VASC). In several reviews, a recurring issue has emerged: cases where practitioners identify ‘bi-directional violence’ or ‘dual-allegations’ between individuals. This creates significant difficulties in accurately assessing risk, determining whether there is a primary victim and primary perpetrator, and making informed safeguarding decisions.

While some valuable resources exist, such as Michael Johnson’s domestic abuse typologies and the Respect practice toolkit for identifying primary victims and perpetrators, these tools are not yet consistently embedded across all agencies responding to domestic abuse. Particularly within policing and social care, practitioners often lack accessible, practical guidance to navigate these complex cases with confidence.

With the support of VISION Co-Investigator and Senior Lecturer Dr Elizabeth (Lizzie) Cook, Danielle’s focus in the PiR programme will be to bridge the gap between research and practice by developing practical resources for professionals. These tools will equip practitioners with greater clarity and confidence when navigating cases involving dual-reports, ultimately improving risk assessment and decision-making.

For further information, please contact Lizzie at elizabeth.cook@citystgeorges.ac.uk

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Webinar: Using animation to campaign against VAWG

This event is in the past.

As part of VISION’s campaign to support the 2025 United Nations’ 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, “End Digital Violence Against Women and Girls”, we invite you to a lunchtime webinar on Monday, 8 December.

We will showcase a series of animations created to raise awareness about digital violence including technology-facilitated abuse and sextortion (image-based abuse).

The webinar will explore research behind the animations and how animation can be used as a creative, accessible tool to engage audiences, share lived experiences, and promote safer digital spaces for all.

Feel free to bring your lunch and join us!

8 December 2025, 12:00 – 13:00, online 

To register for the event and receive the Teams link, please email: VISION_Management_Team@city.ac.uk

For further information on the animation project, funded by VISION, City St George’s University of London and University of Bristol, please see the VISION blog: United to End Violence Against Women and Girls: An Online Animated Campaign

 

Impact of consecutive COVID-19 lockdowns on GP referrals of women experiencing domestic abuse in England and Wales

To curb COVID-19, three periods of severe physical distancing measures (‘lockdowns’) were imposed by the Government throughout 2020 and 2021 in England and Wales: between 23 March and 1 June 2020 (68 days), 5 November 2020 and 2 December 2020 (27 days) and between 6 January and 8 March 2021 (61 days). These lockdowns resulted in societal changes, including full or part-time school and workplace closures, and reduced community mixing.

The pandemic also necessitated a change in clinical consultations in primary care, with a shift from predominantly face-to-face to mostly remote consultations (telephone, digital and video), complicating the provision of care and support, including safeguarding. The lockdowns made it harder for people to disclose domestic violence and abuse (DVA) to health professionals, as online consultations can form barriers to support.

Long and enforced lockdowns can make it harder to disclose DVA and can have a detrimental impact on DVA victim-survivors and their families. Previous studies suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic and its lockdowns have led to an increase in DVA incidence. Refuge, the organisation running the 24-hour national DVA helpline in England, reported that calls surged by 60% during 2020 compared with the previous year. There is, however, scarce evidence on the impact of consecutive lockdowns over a period of almost 2 years on referrals from primary care to DVA support services in England.

The research team, led by Dr Jasmina Panovska-Griffiths and others including VISION researchers Professor Gene Feder and Dr Estela Capelas Barbosa, evaluated the impact of the three successive national lockdowns on the referrals from general practice (GP) to the Identification and Referral to Improve Safety DVA services. Their study, Interrupted time series and non-linear regression analyses to evaluate the impact of the three consecutive COVID-19 national lockdowns on the general practice referrals of women experiencing domestic violence and abuse in England and Wales, is the first to evaluate the continual impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the three consecutive national lockdowns in 2020 and 2021 on DVA referrals. The researchers also explored the relationship between stringency of lockdowns and number of DVA referrals.

Anonymised data on daily referrals, interrupted-time series and non-linear regression quantified the impact of the three national lockdowns over 2020 and 2021 comparing analogous periods in the 2 years before and after, reporting incidence rate ratios, 95% Confidence Intervals and p values. Time spent at home and workplace visits over the lockdown periods were quantified as proxies for the stringency of the different lockdowns.

The first national lockdown in early 2020 led to a reduced number of referrals to DVA services. Over the second and the third lockdown, there was a possible increase in the number of referrals. The first national lockdown was more stringent (58% decline in workplace visits; 22% increase in time spent at home) than the second (34% decline in workplace visits; 14% increase in time spent at home) or the third (18% decline in workplace visits; 18% increase in time spent at home).

Increased freedom of movement alongside easier access to GP services during the two latter, less stringent, lockdowns compared with the first, stringent, lockdown could have contributed to the different trends in referrals. The research team determined that ensuring access to primary care and adequate and continuing provision of specialist support for people experiencing DVA is important during national emergencies. Further research, coproduced with DVA survivors and DVA agencies, is necessary to establish and evaluate the most appropriate support during both potential future national lockdowns and other systemic closures (eg, school holidays).

Recommendation

More stringent systemic closures will lead to a reduced number of referrals to a specialist DVA programme, while more relaxed system closures may result in increased referrals. This highlights the importance of ensuring adequate access to support, such as primary care, where people can safely disclose DVA and be referred to service providers during system closures, regardless of the stringency.

For further information: Please contact Jasmina at jasmina.panovska-griffiths@queens.ox.ac.uk

To cite: Panovska-Griffiths J, Szilassy E, Downes L, Dixon S, Dowrick A, Griffiths C, Feder G, Capelas Barbosa E. Interrupted time series and non-linear regression analyses to evaluate the impact of the three consecutive COVID-19 national lockdowns on the general practice referrals of women experiencing domestic violence and abuse in England and Wales. BMJ Public Health. 2025;3:e002408. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjph-2024-002408

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