Domestic violence increases by a third in Sandwell amid lockdown
Domestic violence in Sandwell increased by more than 30 per cent during the coronavirus lockdown, social workers have revealed.
And child protection officers are now bracing themselves for more cases of abuse as schools fully reopen in September.
Councillors on the Children’s Services and Education Scrutiny Board heard during March and June domestic violence notifications to Sandwell Children Trust increased by 31 per cent.
The rise came while schools were closing and teachers not being able to report signs of abuse, and social workers carried out fewer face-to-face family visits.
Saying the trust is preparing for a ‘surge’ when schools reopen in September the trust’s chair, Jacqui Smith, said she was concerned about an increase in child protection cases.
She said: “We are worried about an increase, for example, in the cases of domestic abuse we have seen.
“We worry, I think, that despite our attempts to do visiting, either virtual or by other methods, this has been a period of time when children who are potentially at risk have been away from the eyes of professionals whether or not that was in school or by our social workers.”
Stress
She continued: “We have done everything we can to make sure we have been clear about what the risks are and we have been checking up and visiting children but I think that will have an impact.”
Pauline Turner, director of operations, said the number of families struggling to cope with the lockdown had seen an increase in calls for help.
She said: “Some of the referees we have coming through show an increase in the number of families that probably won’t have come to our attention if it hadn’t been for Covid.
“Families we never knew before, things have gone very, very wrong for them and we won’t have had contact with them but for Covid.
“Families who are under this type of stress just haven’t be able to manage.”
