Hairdressers Are Being Taught To Spot Signs Of Domestic Abuse

Hairdressers and beauticians are being trained to spot signs of domestic abuse, in a new campaigned by Norfolk County Council following the death of Kerri McAuley, 32, who was killed by her partner in January 2017. According to her hairdresser, Annie Reilley, Kerri had confided in her about the abuse she was suffering at home saying ‘I know he’s going to kill me’.

‘I just thought it was a statement, a figure of speech,’ Annie told the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme, stating that she feels she should’ve called the police at the time, but wasn’t aware Kerri meant what she was saying. ‘I've asked myself so many times, 'what if?’, she continued.

With the support of Kerri’s mum, Lesley McAuley, Norfolk Country Council have now held a conference for 250 beauticians and hairdressers hoping to give them the tools and confidence to act when a they’re concerned for a client’s wellbeing.

Christen Williams, the councils domestic abuse change coordinator, said the conference is also about knowing how to empower clients to contact the authorities and when to call the police themselves, given that perpetrators of domestic abuse are known to control and coerce their partners into keeping quiet.

Lesley told the BBC that despite having a ‘very open’ relationship with her daughter, the nature of abuse means that victims ‘don't talk to their family and they don't talk to their close friends.’ She hopes that this campaign will ensure other families do not have to go through the pain she and her family have endured, stating her daughter now has two legacies. ‘One of them is her two sons,’ she told the BBC, ‘and the other is to raise as much domestic violence awareness as we can, to get help out there for these women, children and also men being abused.’

The conference comes after an official review into Kerri’s death found that the police, probation service, the CPS and social services had all missed opportunities to keep her safe. As such, it was recommended that campaigns like this be rolled out in order to ensure more people that are potential confidants of domestic abuse victims can spot the signs.

The increasing burden on other professions to protect domestic abuse victims speaks volumes about the extent of budget cuts on police forces and women’s refuges. Last year, it was reported that council spending on refuges for vulnerable women and children had been cut by nearly £7m since 2010, with more than 4,000 victims feeling domestic abuse unable to access the services – according to Women’s Aid.

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Alongside a 19% reduction in police budgets since 2010, police cuts have also left the service ‘in danger of becoming ineffective,’ according to the chief constable of the West Midlands force. Early findings from the Women’s Aid ‘Domestic Abuse Audit 2018’ also found that domestic abuse services are seeing a ‘rise in the number of referrals to their servicers as well as survivors and children coming to them with increased support needs. Yet due to continued funding difficulties, services are struggling to meet demand.’

What’s clear is that while giving more potential confidants the tools to spot domestic abuse is a welcome change, it’s also necessary that the police and domestic violence services are adequately funded to do their jobs.