{"id":3469,"date":"2025-10-29T15:00:44","date_gmt":"2025-10-29T15:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/?p=3469"},"modified":"2025-10-29T15:04:31","modified_gmt":"2025-10-29T15:04:31","slug":"3469","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/2025\/10\/29\/3469\/","title":{"rendered":"Clare\u2019s Law: When Delays Can Cost Lives &#8211; Sarah&#8217;s Story."},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A Law Meant to Protect<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In 2009, Clare Wood was murdered by her ex-partner\u2014a man with a known history of violence against women. Her death sparked public outrage and led to the creation of the <strong>Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS)<\/strong>, commonly known as <strong>Clare\u2019s Law<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The scheme gives people the <strong>\u201cright to ask\u201d<\/strong> police whether their partner\u2014or someone they are worried about\u2014has a history of abusive behaviour. It also allows police to act proactively through a <strong>\u201cright to know\u201d<\/strong>, where they can share information if they believe someone may be at risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In principle, Clare\u2019s Law exists to save lives. But as a recent <strong>BBC investigation<\/strong> reveals, in practice, delays and system failures are still putting people in danger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Sarah\u2019s Story: A Call for Urgency<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Sarah (not her real name) was pregnant when she asked the police for information about her boyfriend\u2019s past. She had started noticing worrying behaviour\u2014accusations of cheating, controlling her movements, and emotional manipulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Under government guidelines, police should respond to a Clare\u2019s Law request within <strong>28 days<\/strong>. Sarah followed up a month later and was told there was <em>nothing to disclose.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Five months later, she discovered that her partner had <strong>previously strangled other women<\/strong>. By that time, she had already experienced the same violence firsthand\u2014choking, threats, and fear for her safety and her unborn child.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cI just feel that had the Clare\u2019s Law disclosure been given correctly at the correct time, then I could have made an informed decision as to whether I should stay or not.\u201d<br>\u2014 <em>Sarah (BBC News interview)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Her case isn\u2019t isolated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The Reality Behind the Numbers<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Freedom of Information data obtained by the BBC shows alarming delays:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>7 police forces<\/strong> in England and Wales failed to meet the 28-day limit in <strong>most cases<\/strong> during 2024.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In <strong>Avon and Somerset<\/strong>, 80% of disclosures took longer than the legal timeframe.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In <strong>Wiltshire<\/strong>, delays have previously led to people coming to harm.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Requests under Clare\u2019s Law have surged \u2014 from <strong>14,000 in 2019<\/strong> to <strong>nearly 59,000 in 2024<\/strong> \u2014 but police forces say they lack the resources to manage the demand. Some victims have waited more than <strong>two years<\/strong> for a response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While several forces have since increased staff and restructured their domestic abuse units, the damage for many survivors has already been done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>When Time Equals Safety<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Experts stress that Clare\u2019s Law is most effective <strong>early in a relationship<\/strong>, before an abuser has gained control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr Charlotte Barlow, a criminologist at the University of Leeds, explains:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cWhen you are in a relationship with an abuser, it\u2019s incredibly difficult to leave. Delays increase the risk because by the time a disclosure comes, the victim may already be trapped.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr Katerina Hadjimatheou from the University of Essex adds that the system is \u201ca massive resource burden on police\u201d and argues that <strong>domestic abuse services<\/strong>\u2014not police\u2014could be better placed to handle initial requests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Her research shows that most people who apply for a disclosure <strong>have never accessed other forms of support<\/strong>, meaning that Clare\u2019s Law represents a vital point of early intervention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A Shared Responsibility<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>At Contento Social Homes, we support survivors of domestic abuse and advocate for <strong>safer systems that work when they\u2019re needed most<\/strong>. Clare\u2019s Law was designed as a lifeline \u2014 but it can only serve its purpose if responses are timely, accurate, and supported by wider safeguarding networks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No survivor should have to endure abuse while waiting for information that could have protected them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you are concerned about your partner or someone you know, you can <strong>make a Clare\u2019s Law request<\/strong> through your local police force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Call <strong>101 (non-emergency)<\/strong> or visit <a>www.gov.uk\/domestic-violence-and-abuse<\/a> for more information.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If you are in immediate danger, <strong>always call 999<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Support is also available through organisations like <strong>Refuge<\/strong>, <strong>Women\u2019s Aid<\/strong>, and <strong>National Domestic Abuse Helpline (0808 2000 247)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Our Commitment<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Contento Social Homes continues to raise awareness of <strong>the barriers survivors face<\/strong> and advocate for systems that protect women and children faster, better, and more compassionately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our mission is clear: <em>A Home for Every Woman Survivor.<\/em><br>Because safety shouldn\u2019t depend on waiting times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Sources:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>BBC News: <em>\u201cPolice failed to tell me about my partner\u2019s violent past. He ended up choking me\u201d<\/em> \u2014 By Harriet Agerholm, Senior Data Journalist, BBC Verify (29 October 2025)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>UK Government Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme Guidance (2023)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>University of Leeds and University of Essex Research on Clare\u2019s Law<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Law Meant to Protect In 2009, Clare Wood was murdered by her ex-partner\u2014a man with a known history of violence against women. Her death sparked public outrage and led to the creation of the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS), commonly known as Clare\u2019s Law. The scheme gives people the \u201cright to ask\u201d police whether [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3471,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3469","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3469","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3469"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3469\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3474,"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3469\/revisions\/3474"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3469"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3469"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/contentosocialhomes.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3469"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}