Lack of child access facilities leads to abuse

The lack of suitable facilities for supervised child access visits means children and their mothers are still subjected to physical and verbal abuse, according to a new study.

The research, led by Stephanie Holt, assistant professor at the School of Social Work and Social Policy at Trinity College Dublin, found that in some cases children were witnessing or experiencing violence, when domestic violence had been a factor in the relationship before their parents had separated.

The study involved 219 mothers of 449 children answering a questionnaire and then face-to-face interviews of 61 children, mothers, fathers, and legal, health, and social care professionals.