The Mallow-based You Are Not Alone (YANA) domestic support group said that it expects to see a surge in contacts once the third lock-down is lifted.
Project co-ordinator Ruth Lehane explained this has been the pattern when previous lock-down restrictions have been relaxed as women have more opportunity to get away from their abuser and make contact with them. Women who have been confined to their homes with an abuser due to the COVID restrictions have a chance to get out and contact us without someone looking over their shoulder all the time, said Ruth. While we have been operating throughout the pandemic, we realise that for some people contacting us or, indeed, anyone for help has been impossible. But we are there and will always be there for women who have suffered domestic abuse and need help to take that first step to take back control of their own lives. So I would appeal to anyone in this situation to contact us and we will be there for them, she added.
The project co-ordinator with a north-Cork domestic-abuse support group for women has said the group has experienced a dramatic increase in the number of contacts it has received over the past year.
Ruth Lehane of the Mallow-based You Are Not Alone (YANA) Domestic Violence Project said contacts had increased by up to approximately 50 per cent since the start of the COVID pandemic when compared to the previous 12 months. There have been drops and surges in contacts since the pandemic began, but the drops were not as low as before, and the surges are most definitely higher, said Ruth. In fact, we have had to increase staff numbers at times in order to cope with both the number of calls we have been receiving and the intense nature of some of these calls. We can spend up to two hours on a call, especially with new clients so they can tell their story, be heard and allow us to put a plan of action in place to help them, she added.