The number is a leap from the 2,000 victims NCDV helped in 2018. The team, based in Guildford, has 45 members and helps callers from all over England, irrespective of their financial circumstances. It aims to get effective legal protection in place for them in as little as 24 hours.
Mark Groves, NCDV chief executive, said: ‘We make no charge whatsoever to the victims who call us. We’re here to help those who cannot afford a solicitor get legal aid funding urgently so that they can apply for and get proper legal protection in place.
‘If some victims don’t qualify for legal aid but still cannot afford a solicitor that is when we can step in and help them pro bono―typically using our experience to help them appear as a litigant in person.’
Groves said the increase reflected rising public awareness of domestic violence and abuse, partly due to public campaigns such as NCDV’s World Cup initiative in July 2018. The organisation receives about 7,000 calls each month from people who are either suffering or at risk. Most of the callers are women who have been referred by the police.
‘Our service in helping victims secure non-molestation orders is one of the most effective counters to domestic violence because if abusers breach an NMO it is a criminal offence punishable by up to five years in prison,’ Groves said. However, many callers are in financial as well as domestic distress, and while some are able to secure legal aid funding, others can’t. Groves said one victim was asked to make a personal contribution of £45,000.
NCDV was founded in 2002 as the London Centre for Domestic Violence by ex-barrister and policeman, Dr Steve Connor. It has trained more than 8,000 police officers on how to counter domestic violence and abuse, and launched pioneering database systems.
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