Children who witness domestic violence.

According to a report by the Department of Health, at least 750,000 children a year witness domestic violence.

Children  can 'witness' domestic violence in  many different ways. For example, they may get caught in the middle of an incident in an effort to make the violence stop. They may be in the room next door and hear the abuse or see their mother's physical injuries following an incident of violence. They may be forced to stay in one room or may not be allowed to play. They may be forced to witness sexual abuse or they may be forced to take part in verbally abusing the victim.

Adults often think that children and young people aren’t really affected by the violence if they don’t see all the fighting. However this isn’t true. Even if a child or young person doesn’t see the shouting or the hitting, they’ve probably heard it or maybe they’ve seen their parent bruised or upset after an argument.

As a result of witnessing violence, children can develop behavioural problems and become withdrawn. I will be posting the ways in which abuse can affect children who witness it as well as a story of a friend of mine who was affected by the domestic violence her mother suffered in the hands of her father.