Domestic abuse is a serious crime in the UK. Domestic abuse does not only occur between couples. It can also involve wider family members, including parental abuse by an adolescent or grown child. It can exist between older siblings, or the wider extended family. It can affect anyone, regardless of age, social background, gender, religion, sexual orientation or ethnicity.
Domestic abuse usually occurs in the home and can take many forms:
- physical abuse like hitting, kicking or hair pulling
- emotional abuse like blackmail, mental torture and threats to disown a person or harm those they care about
- controlling, for example, restricting a person’s movements or access to or contact with family or friends or preventing access to money or a chosen career
- coercive behaviour for example threats, humiliation/intimidation that is used to harm, punish, frighten
- It can be rape – being married or in a relationship doesn’t mean that a partner has the right to force sex against the will of the other
Domestic abuse is complex. It can go unidentified by agencies, families, friends, colleagues and even victims themselves. If you are worried about a relationship you are in, concerned about your own behaviour towards someone or concerned about someone you know then help is available in Nottinghamshire.
For support, Nottinghamshire has a 24 hour free helpline and this can be reached on 0808 800 0340
More details on the wide range of services and organisations that can help can be found by following this link:
www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/care/health-and-wellbeing/domestic-abuse-andsexual-violence-support 
In an emergency call the Police on 999 or for a non emergency 101.