New domestic abuse refuge to open in north Northamptonshire

A new refuge for women and children who are fleeing domestic abuse is set to open in the north of the county.

Northamptonshire Domestic Abuse Service (NDAS) will open the refuge on November 1, accommodating three women and up to three children.

The exact location of the refuge has not been released to protect those using it, although it will be in north Northamptonshire after the charity was approached by long-standing supporters Northamptonshire Quakers who offered a property to them.

NDAS currently provides refuge spaces for 25 female and three male victims and can accommodate up to 69 children but demand for space has always outstripped capacity - a problem that has proved harder to solve during the Covid crisis with many victims spending more time at home with abusive partners in lockdown.

In 2019-20 they were only able to accept 30 per cent of clients that called them requesting refuge.

NDAS chief executive Rachel Duncan said: “In such challenging times, it is really great to have this opportunity to increase our support to vulnerable people fleeing domestic abuse.

"It is now even harder for victim survivors to seek help and the escalation of abuse during the lockdown has resulted in a surge of victims seeking support.

"With this small increase in provision we can start to meet some of this demand.

"But it is important to note that we are still unsure about the future of our seven refuges in 2021-22 and are working hard to raise awareness of the need for long-term, sustainable and funded specialist services for domestic abuse."

The new refuge is in the process of being furnished and the charity hopes to utilise it to improve their response to clients from diverse communities.

The charity thanked everyone who offered help with the new refuge after they were "overwhelmed" with offers of support after an appeal on social media.

Last week Northamptonshire crime commissioner Stephen Mold lobbied Prime Minister Boris Johnson about domestic abuse funding when he visited Northampton's police HQ.

In January he said the domestic abuse rates in Northamptonshire ‘scared the living daylights out of him’ and kept him awake at night.

In the past year there have been 13,000 domestic abuse incidents in Northamptonshire - which is 15 per cent of all recorded crime.

Two months ago in July it was announced six domestic and sexual abuse services in Northamptonshire would share nearly £250,000 in extra funding.

Anyone who wants to support NDAS can visit www.ndas.co/donate-and-fundraising.