Campaigners have accused the government of rendering children and carers bereaved by domestic abuse 'invisible' within its landmark new strategy to tackle violence against women and girls.
A 'watershed moment' with a critical omission
Unveiled by Minister Jess Phillips on Thursday, the framework has been hailed as a 'watershed moment that must be applauded' by The Joanna Simpson Foundation. However, the charity has issued a stark warning that the plan fails to account for the roughly 2,000 children projected to lose a parent to domestic homicide over the next decade, and the carers left to support them.
Diana Parkes CBE, who co-founded the foundation after her daughter Joanna Simpson was killed by her estranged husband in 2010, stated: 'Having lost my daughter to domestic homicide, I know exactly how devastating the impact is on the children and carers left behind after such brutal acts. It is unacceptable that the Government’s strategy fails to recognise them in any meaningful way.'
She emphasised that families living with the consequences of domestic homicide cannot be treated as an afterthought in national policy.
Jade's Law and a raft of new measures
The foundation also condemned the strategy for not detailing how it will implement Jade’s Law. This proposed law would automatically suspend the parental responsibility of an offender who has killed a partner or ex-partner with whom they share children.
The new strategy itself contains a wide range of initiatives aimed at prevention, justice, and support. These include:
- £20 million for schools in England to tackle radicalisation and confront harmful behaviours before they escalate into abuse.
- Mandatory lessons on healthy relationships in secondary schools, delivered by specially trained teachers.
- A crackdown on AI-generated 'deepfake' sexual abuse imagery.
- The rollout of Domestic Abuse Protection Orders to address economic abuse, stalking, and coercive control.
- A £1 billion fund split between victim services and safe housing for survivors.
'We are the invisible victims'
Despite these measures, campaigners argue the investment 'falls seriously short' and the plan overlooks critical survivors. Hetti Barkworth-Nanton CBE, co-founder of the Joanna Simpson Foundation, called the oversight 'indefensible'.
This sentiment is echoed by those with direct experience. Roann Court, whose mother Claire Marshall was killed by an ex-boyfriend, described the support for her family as 'non-existent'. She told Metro that carers—often the victim's own grieving relatives—are suddenly thrust into parental roles without adequate support.
'Excluding children and carers bereaved by domestic homicide from this strategy is deeply disappointing,' Court said. 'It reinforces the message that once a homicide occurs, families like mine are no longer seen... We are the invisible victims.'
Hollie Out, who was 15 when her mother was killed, highlighted the lifelong trauma. 'This traumatic incident from my childhood has impacted my adult life in so many ways,' she said, expressing deep concern over the exclusion of affected children and carers from the government's plan.
Linda Westcarr, now raising her granddaughter after her daughter Kennedi was killed, criticised the lack of a clear plan for Jade's Law. 'Families cannot survive on promises alone,' she stated. 'The absence of any clear implementation plan sends a painful message that families like mine have once again been forgotten.'
In response to the launch, Jess Phillips MP asserted that the strategy marked a departure by deploying 'the full power of the state across national government and local government,' rather than leaving the issue solely to crime-fighting departments.
