Stats show someone you know must be affected by a violent partner or parent

By refusing to accept that violence against women is not just a problem but an epidemic — we are complicit, writes Louise O’Neill

New figures reveal the number of women reporting domestic abuse surged by 43% during the pandemic. Women's Aid received more than 30,000 disclosures of abuse in 2020, and of those, almost 6,000 involved a child victim — the huge volume of contacts was described as "the tip of the iceberg".

The abuse included women saying they had been strangled, had their teeth knocked out, as well as forms of coercive control.