Hello and welcome

This area of our website is for people who know someone who is currently experiencing domestic abuse, or who has experienced domestic abuse in the past. The survivor you are worried about may be your friend, family member, neighbour, or colleague. You may have a very close relationship with the person, or it may be someone you know very little, but you want to help.

Thank you for your concern, and for wanting to know more about how you can help – your support is really important to the person you are worried about. This handbook is for you.

In the pages of this handbook, we explain what you can do to help the person you know, and how you can look after yourself. Every situation of domestic abuse is different, but we hope that hearing about the experiences of others, will help you to feel more equipped, and less alone.

There are lots of things that you can say and do to support the survivor, and there are also lots of specialist services and organisations, in the UK, that can help people experiencing domestic abuse and the people trying to support them.

You are welcome to share this website with the person you are worried about, but the handbook has been created and developed with worried friends, family members, neighbours, and colleagues in mind.

Domestic abuse is everyone’s business, and it is important that we all try to help.

Most survivors of domestic abuse reach out, at some point, for informal support (support from their friends, family members, neighbours, or colleagues). Survivors tell us that often this support has a huge impact on their experience, particularly if the person listens, is kind, and offers practical help. You can discuss what practical help might be appropriate and safe for the survivor’s situation, and consider options like childcare, a place to stay, or information on what services are in your local area. When survivors receive good informal support, they are safer, more likely to leave or end the relationship, and they have better recovery. We know that lots of friends, family members, neighbours, and colleagues want to help, but often have no idea where to start – this is the reason why we created this handbook.

We hope that this handbook can help you to support the survivors in your life, and if you have any feedback you would like to share, please email website@womensaid.org.uk.