Domestic Abuse Statistics UK
Definition of DA
Domestic Abuse consists of any of the following:
- Physical abuse
- Sexual abuse
- Violent or threatening behaviour
- Controlling or coercive behaviour
- Economic abuse
- Psychological, emotional or other abuse
Where the victim and perpetrator(s) are aged 16 or over and are “personally connected” to each other. It does not matter whether the behaviour consists of a single incident or a course of conduct.
Prevelance
Stats taken from, (Domestic Abuse in England & Wales Overview, Office for National Statistics. Nov 2025), (National Centre for Domestic Violence 2026), (Office for National Statistics. 2023), (Femicide Census, 2020).
1 in 5 adults experience Domestic Abuse during their lifetime. This equates to: 1 in 4 women and 1 in 6-7 men.
In the year ending March 2025, it is estimated 3.8 million people aged 16 and over were victims of domestic abuse (approx. 2.2 million women and 1.5 million men)
The police recorded 1.4 million domestic abuse-related crimes and incidents in England and Wales in the year ending March 2025.
Women are more likely to experience repeat victimisation, be physically injured or killed and experience sexual violence.
For every three victims, two are female and one is male
89% of people referred to our service seeking civil protection orders last year were women.
A domestic abuse related call is made to the police every 30 seconds.
Domestic abuse is a largely hidden crime which goes unreported to the police.
Less than one-in-five victims and survivors report to the police.
Statistics
Serious Assault & Deaths
- There were 111 domestic homicides in the year ending March 2025, of these, 75 were women and 36 were men; 67 of which were killed by a partner or ex-partner.
(Homicide in England and Wales – Office for National Statistics, 2026) - 262 domestic abuse related deaths were recorded the year ending March 2024 of which 98 suspected suicide following domestic abuse.
(Domestic Homicide Project – VKPP Work, 2024) - 276 women were victims of domestic homicide between March 2018 to 2020
(Home Office, 2023) - 86 men were victims of domestic homicide between March 2018 to 2020
(Home Office, 2023) - The risk of serious assault and death is highest for a woman after she leaves an abusive relationship. According to the Femicide Census, 38% of women killed by their ex-partner from 2009 to 2018 were killed within the first month of separation and 89% in the first year.
(Femicide Census, 2020) - Women are more likely to be victims of high risk or severe domestic abuse: 95% of people accessing an IDVA service and 94% of people going to MARAC are women. Men are also at risk of serious assault and death from their female or male partners.(Idva_Dataset-2024.pdf, 2024) & (SafeLives. (2023). Marac data 2022-23 England and Wales.)
- Each year more than 75,000 people in the UK are at high and imminent risk of being murdered or seriously injured because of domestic abuse.(SafeLives Marac national dataset (2023), 2023)
Abuse by family members
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In a study of 32 Domestic Homicide Reviews a quarter were family-related homicide, with most of those cases involving a parent killed by their adult child.
(Home Office, 2022)
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Of Domestic Homicides year ending March 2025, 25 were committed by a parent, son or daughter and 20 by another family member.
(Homicide in England and Wales – Office for National Statistics, 2026)
Pregnancy, Children & Young People
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DA often begins or escalates during pregnancy. 1 in 3 pregnant women experience DA.
(NHS, 2023)
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78% of children living with domestic abuse are directly harmed by the perpetrator of the abuse, in addition to the harm caused by witnessing the abuse of others.
(SafeLives Marac national dataset (2023)) -
Over 105,000 children live in homes where there is high-risk domestic abuse.
-
One in five children in the UK experience domestic abuse.
(For Baby’s Sake, 2025)
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Young people aged 16-24 were the highest percentage of victims of domestic abuse year ending March 2024.
(Crime Survey for England and Wales: Office for National Statistics, 2024).
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49% of teenagers in intimate relationships aged between 13-17 in England and Wales experienced violent or controlling behaviour.
(Youth Endowment Fund, 2024).
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In 2025 about a third of those experiencing domestic abuse were aged 16-24.
(Domestic abuse victim characteristics, England and Wales – Office for National Statistics, 2026).
Economic Cost of DA:
- The estimated socio-economic cost of DA for adults only in England and Wales during 2025/2026 is £89.3 billion.
(Freedom from violence and abuse: a cross-government strategy – GOV.UK, 2025)
Impact of DA
Stats taken from (Walby, S. (2004), The cost of domestic violence. Women and Equality Unit. London: Home Office), (SafeLives, 2026) and (Domestic Abuse in England & Wales Overview, Office for National Statistics. Nov 2025).
It is estimated that every day almost 30 women attempt suicide as a result of experiencing domestic abuse and every week three women take their own lives.