Domestic abuse is driving victims to suicide, according to the police, who have acknowledged past failures and vowed to investigate more instances of violence against women. The warning comes as a new report reveals that suicide rates among victims of domestic abuse have surpassed the number of individuals killed by a partner for the second consecutive year.
The Domestic Homicide Project, funded by the Home Office and led by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) using real-time police data, documented 1,012 domestic abuse-related deaths over four years, described as a “grim milestone” by Louisa Rolfe, the NPCC’s lead for domestic abuse. This highlights the deep-rooted nature of violence against women and girls in our communities.
Out of the 262 domestic abuse-related deaths recorded in England and Wales between April 2023 and March last year, 98 were classified as suspected victim suicide following domestic abuse (SVSDA). The report also examined deaths from falls, with 22 recorded over 13 police forces and found significant that three of the women who died were pregnant.
The analysis, conducted in collaboration with the campaign group Killed Women, advocates for domestic abuse to be a critical factor in police investigations for any death of a woman who has fallen from a height. In 2024, The Guardian’s “Killed Women Count” campaign documented every reported case of a woman killed by a man, with the total reaching 80 deaths by year’s end.
Rolfe, a Metropolitan Police assistant commissioner, expects a rise in manslaughter convictions due to a new “unexpected deaths policy,” which will encourage officers to consider whether domestic abuse contributed to an individual’s death. She acknowledged the difficulty in proving a causal link between abuse and suicide within the UK’s legal system but emphasized the importance of thorough investigation and evidence collection.
The report also found that 68% of victims and/or perpetrators were known to the police or another agency, highlighting the need for better information-sharing to prevent future deaths. In 54% of domestic homicides, the perpetrator was known to the police, and 90% of SVSDA cases involved a history of coercive and controlling behavior by someone known to agencies. Importantly, the proportion of deaths attributed to current or ex-partners remained roughly 30% over the four-year period.
Minister for safeguarding and violence against women and girls, Jess Phillips, stressed the importance of understanding the connection between domestic abuse and homicides, suicides, and unintended deaths to better prevent these occurrences.
In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans provides support via freephone 116 123, or via email for those in the UK (jo@samaritans.org) and Ireland (jo@samaritans.ie). In the US, those in crisis can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988 or text HOME to 741741. In Australia, Lifeline offers crisis support at 13 11 14, and other international helplines are available at befrienders.org.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/mar/25/domestic-abusers-driving-more-victims-to-suicide-warn-police
