Domestic abuse: staff factsheet

Use this factsheet to make sure your staff are clear on why they need to be alert to potential domestic abuse, and what to look for.

You could either use it as a basis for talking about the issue at a staff meeting, or share it with staff to read themselves.

Want to make it more interactive?

Ask staff how they’d define domestic abuse, or what forms it can take, before you tell them. If you're not 100% confident on the different forms yourself, read up in advance here. 

If you want to have more of a discussion about the issue at a staff meeting, here are some questions to start discussion:

• How might you define domestic abuse to the pupils you work with?
• What could we do on a wider basis to support young people who witness domestic abuse?
• What support might enable families in this situation to change patterns of behaviour?
• What prejudices might stand in the way of us identifying cases of domestic abuse?

May 2021

We updated these factsheets to include a reference to the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 recognising children who live with domestic abuse as victims in law.

... use our safeguarding scenario on domestic abuse to get staff to put the learning into practice.