15 minute read
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN SOUTHAMPTON
SEX & RELATIONSHIPS
According to the Crown Prosecution Service, domestic abuse is defined as ‘any incident of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are or have been intimate partners or family members, regardless of their gender or sexuality.’
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Domestic abuse comes in many forms, and is a lot more complicated and widespread than the media might lead you to think. Alongside physical violence, the Government defines the following actions as domestic abuse: • Financial abuse (controlling your partner’s finances and preventing them from having financial independence). • Sexual abuse (rape, sexual assault, revenge porn and coercing your partner into sexual acts). • Psychological abuse. • Emotional abuse. • Coercive control (which became a criminal offence in 2015).
The National Prevalence of Domestic Abuse
However, although 1,198,094 incidents of domestic abuse were recorded by the police, only 68,098 (5.68%) of these led to a successful conviction. Consequently, considering these extremely low conviction rates, is it really any surprise that so many domestic violence cases go unreported?
Although the number of recorded domestic abuse incidents is just over a million, there is an estimated 2.4 million adults who live with domestic abuse. Note the discrepancy between these two figures - it suggests that approximately 1.2 million adults suffer abuse in silence, never bothering the report their struggles to the police.
Indeed, domestic violence charity Refuge points to many systematic failures that contribute to the growing national prevalence of domestic abuse. Refuge themselves report that they have received cuts to 80% of their services since 2011, with some funding being cut by 50%. Furthermore, since 2010, this country has lost 17% of its specialist domestic violence units.
What makes it worse is that as well as domestic abuse victims having less resources to turn to, the resources they have left are not doing enough. Before receiving effective help to stop the abuse, it is reported that 85% of abuse victims sought help from professionals an average of five times. To make it worse, consider this - although the police receive domestic violence-related calls every 30 seconds, only 8% of domestic abuse cases end in prosecution.
Domestic Abuse in Southampton
But how does Southampton come into this? Unfortunately, Hampshire is one of the worst area in the UK for domestic abuse cases. In 2017/18, Hampshire (Southampton inclusive) reported 21.9 domestic violence incidents per 1000 people.
This is higher than the South East average, which reported only 20.0 cases per 1000 people. Indeed, 30% of all violent crime reported in Southampton had a domestic abuse element. Whilst 1,430 domestic abuse incidents were reported in 2010/11, there has been a steady increase over the last seven years, with the latest data showing that the number of such crimes stands at 3,031. This shows that the rate of domestic abuse cases has more than doubled in less than a decade.
Furthermore, research by SafeLives shows that Southampton has an abnormally high level of ‘high risk’ domestic violence cases. ‘High risk’ refers to cases where the domestic violence victim is at risk of ‘serious harm and death’ at the hands of the abuser. In a city like Southampton, there should only be 45 high-risk cases per a population of 10,000. However, this number actually stands at 80.3 high-risk cases per a population of 10,000 - again, almost double what it should be.
More concerningly, 13.5% of all recorded crime in Southampton was flagged as domestic in 2018/19, which marked a 13.1% increase of such crime compared to the year before. In turn, if we look at violent crime specifically, 31.5% of all violent crime in Southampton was marked as domestic in 2018/19 - which was a 15% increase in comparison to the previous year alone.
Risk Factors
Sex & Relationships Statistics shows that a low income, low educational levels, a lack of education and being of a young age are all factors in people becoming domestic abuse perpetrators.
Indeed, with Southampton being home to two different universities, 20% of the city’s population is classified as young people (aged 15-24). This rate is significantly higher than the national average, and with young people being more likely to become abusers (partly due to their own upbringing and relationship inexperience) this then causes domestic abuse to be more common in Southampton.
Southampton is also a city with high levels of deprivation, with it being ranked the 67th most deprived local authority area in England (out of 326). Indeed, with deprivation encompassing many of the aforementioned risk factors like unemployment and low income, it should come as no surprise that domestic violence is eight times higher in the 20% most deprived areas than in the 20% least deprived. This then suggests that the levels of deprivation as well as the high number of young people are both contributing factors to the problem of domestic abuse in Southampton.
How Southampton are Tackling Domestic Abuse
So, given we have established that Southampton has especially bad levels of domestic abuse, the next question we should consider is this - what are the council doing about it?
In summer 2018, Southampton City Council took part in the Chartered Institute of Housing’s ‘Make a Stand’ campaign, which involves the Council’s Housing Service pledging to take action against domestic violence in the city. Seventeen members of the Housing Service also trained as Domestic Abuse Champions in order to support residents of their properties who are in need.
Furthermore, in January 2019, Southampton launched a public review on how to tackle domestic abuse in the city. A series of public scrutiny panel meetings took place over the spring of 2019, which culminated in the council releasing a detailed Domestic Abuse Needs Assessment in June of that year, which based its research on the issues raised in these meetings and made recommendations on how to solve the problem moving forward.
All of this work led to the city receiving Domestic Abuse Housing Alliance accreditation in December 2019 (making them only the third local authority to do so).
This prestigious accreditation acknowledged their commitment to supporting domestic abuse victims, but the question is, has all this work translated into results? Until the 2019/2020 statistics come out, we can’t know for sure - but they’re certainly taking steps in the right direction.
WORDS BY CHARLOTTE COLOMBO
M Y R E L A T I O N S H I P W I T H . . . A N STI
Last day of term before Christmas, my first boyfriend, and my first STI. I had entered my first real relationship and had sex for the first time, having finally plucked up the courage to do so. However, the lack of a condom was a thought that remained at the back of my mind. All it takes is that one time you’re not careful enough though, despite my boyfriend having been checked in the past and the results coming up negative. Over the holidays we went to be tested at our respective homes. He was diagnosed with an STI called Mycoplasma Genitalium, or MG for short, but I was given the all clear. The reason his tests had come up negative in the past is that this STI isn’t tested for unless you are showing the appropriate symptoms. It is caused by the smallest known bacterium that can replicate itself, and humans can be infected for years without knowing. Most people have never heard of this infection as it hides behind diseases such as chlamydia and becomes antibiotic resistant, which can lead to infertility in women. In total they estimate that around 3,000 women in the UK a year could become infertile as a result of this infection - not a statistic I wanted to find on the internet at the time. medication that I should have also been taking. I had to take a train to his clinic around 2-3 hours away from me to be given the appropriate test again and then the correct medication. This happened 3 times because the antibiotics failed to kill the infection. Three times I had to sit in a waiting room waiting for an appointment, three times I had to lay on a bench and have a stranger inspect me and three times I had to take strong antibiotics that had some nasty side effects. All because I didn’t use a condom. A young adult in the UK is diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection every four minutes. And yet somehow, I felt like it was only me. One in two sexually active people will contract an STI by the age of 25. Now I’m almost 20, meaning there must be at least one other person I know that’s had one, and yet no one talks about it. People talk about sex, people talk about getting ill, but why are STIs still such a taboo? I’ve painted a reasonably grisly picture here to demonstrate how unpleasant it can be and how easily it can be prevented. However, they are also just something that happen, and they don’t make you dirty, they don’t make you a slut and they shouldn’t be something to be ashamed of. For example, the wonderful Jonathan VanNess from the TV show Queer Eye has bravely shared his story of living with HIV. What I mean to say is that getting an STI can happen to anyone, and, if it happens to you, be open, tell people and get checked. So many of these issues are treatable now by a simple 7-day course of antibiotics with no long-term side effects. To this day, I have not told my mum about my STI experience because it fills me with dread to open up about, and we actually have a very honest relationship. So, don’t do as I did: be open and help end the controversy and shame surrounding STIs.
But why wasn’t I diagnosed? This was because I was showing no symptoms, and therefore my clinic did not prescribe me any antibiotics. My boyfriend, on the other hand, was given the appropriate
WORDS BY ANONYMOUS IMAGES BY REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH SUPPLIES COALITION VIA UNSPLASH
M Y R E L A T I O N S H I P W I T H . . . T H E PILL
WORDS BY ZARAH AKHAVAN-MOOSSAV IMAGE BY ZEN ZHONG
The contraceptive pill is something that means a lot of different things for so many different people. It is taken for different reasons, it affects everyone differently, and we all have varying opinions on it. My relationship with it has meant that I haven’t had a period in over two years...
My reasons for taking the contraceptive pill are something that have changed as I’ve grown up and have been influenced by certain lifestyle choices. I started taking it around age 16 or 17, as a direct result from being diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). This hormonal condition is characterised by many different things and often presents itself by the complete irregularity of periods, and results from hormonal imbalances of oestrogen and testosterone. Having irregular periods, as anyone reading this will agree, is incredibly irritating. I would have to be on guard all the time and prepared for any eventuality. The easiest way to solve this for me was taking a contraceptive pill that regulates periods, which I did.
Luckily, this worked for me and for the first time in my life my periods were as regular as clockwork and easy to manage. However, this was short lived - cue a history of severe headaches which the pill would cause - and I was told to stop taking it. This marked the comeback of irregular periods for a few more years and my PCOS becoming harder to manage.
Fast forward to October 2017, and I started taking the pill again. At this time in my life, my periods were still irregular, but I had also entered into a relationship with my long-term boyfriend and so the pill was a very attractive option. This time it wasn’t just about regulating my periods, but also protecting myself from any accidents, as falling pregnant is not on my agenda. However, I had a different type of contraceptive pill which instead of regulating my periods stopped them completely, making me period-free for more than two years. Though sometimes I think nostalgically about them, for the most part I don’t miss them.
Despite it stopping my periods and handling that side of my PCOS, it wasn’t helping all symptoms that are present with this condition. I was having to find other ways to deal with my hair growth as well as my fluctuating weight, both of which are big ways in which PCOS affects me personally. What it did give me was a sense of security and a way to
protect myself from pregnancy, allowing me to enjoy the intimacy between myself and my boyfriend. Both reasons have made the pill a valuable and crucial part of my lifestyle.
My choice to use the contraceptive pill is something I talk about openly and freely. I advocate for other women to follow suit, but many don’t want to face potential side effects.
I wouldn’t say that I have been greatly affected in a negative way by taking the pill, but I can’t be sure as the side effects of the pill I take are also symptoms of PCOS or things that I’ve experienced regardless of either PCOS or the pill. Whilst these things can be irritating, for me, the positives of taking the pill completely outweigh the negatives.
Fortunately, I have a great relationship with the pill, but not everyone is that lucky. However, what I don’t think people realise is that there are numerous types of pills and choosing one is like finding a new pair of jeans - you just have to keep trying until you find one that suits you.
The Real Price of Brands
I thought moving to Southampton would be like moving into a Dickens novel. And whether you’ve been in Southampton for two years or two minutes, you know how funny that is.
But that’s the kind of the point, isn’t it? When you move somewhere new, you’re filled with all kinds of hopes and expectations about where you’re going and who you’ll be when you get there. And if you’re moving from another country, those fantasies are just supersized. But even though Southampton doesn’t quite have the Victorian glamour I’d been dreaming of, it’s still found a special place in my heart for reasons I never anticipated. And if you’re an international student too, here’s a little teaser of what you have to look forward to.
You’re Automatically Interesting
(Not really). At least, I know I’m not interesting. But apparently no one else got the memo. Because it doesn’t matter if I’m in a taxi, in line at Sainsbury’s, or having a chat at the bus stop, somebody is going to ask me where I’m
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m a bit of a hopeless romantic. Romance is easily my favourite film genre and I’ve seen ‘Love, Rosie’ and ‘One Day’ countless times in the last few months alone. The idea of actually being in a relationship, however, pretty much terrifies me.
Growing up, I always felt like there was a big pressure, especially in secondary school, to get a boyfriend. From the age of 12 , a lot of people in my year started getting into relationships, some jumping quickly from one to the next, but I was never really that bothered. I got asked out a couple of times during this period, and even went out with a guy for a week when I was about 12, although I don’t think that this counts. Sure, I sometimes thought it would be nice to have a boyfriend, especially when we reached 16 and 17 and it seemed like I was the only person who had never had one. But now, having never been in a proper relationship at 22, I don’t actually care.
I have always been the kind of person who genuinely enjoys my own company. While I love spending time with my friends, I also need to be able to retreat and just not spend time with people for several hours, or even a day or two at a time. Therefore, the idea of being in a relationship and spending a lot of time with a person, without getting totally sick of them, is almost laughable sometimes.
I do sometimes think it would be nice to be in a relationship, which is usually when I end up scrolling through Tinder and talking to a guy for several weeks, before I realise that he is definitely not what I want and I have to let him down, ghost him, or, usually, come up with a pretty lame excuse.
Being single or usually being the one to ghost the Tinder boys doesn’t mean I haven’t had my fair share of heartache over the past few years, and this definitely leaves me reluctant to pursue anything with someone. The countless romance movies that I just cannot seem to get enough of have probably given me a slightly idealised image of what a relationship should be like, but I also recognise this. I think still being single at 22 has very much given me the idea that when I do get a boyfriend, hopefully he’ll be it. I know from experience I’m not a casual dater, and I just don’t enjoy it all that well. And part of what terrifies me about getting into a relationship is the potential heartbreak, because I do not deal well with that.
Learning to love myself, as cliché as that may sound to some people, is something that I’ve been trying to work on, and I feel being single is the best situation to be in for that.
At the end of the day, I am very happy with where I am at. The questions from family every time I come home from university about whether I’m seeing anyone yet don’t bother me. While I’ll joke with my friends that I want a boyfriend and would say yes if the right guy came along, I’m content with being single and with myself. I think it would take a pretty great guy to change that.
WORDS BY MEGAN CROSSMAN IMAGE BY ZHEN ZHONG
