Survivors of domestic violence have hailed new plans to restrict the movement of abusers to geographical areas – but warned the policy must not be ‘lip service’
Survivors of domestic violence have hailed new plans to restrict the movement of abusers – but warned the policy must not be “lip service”.
They branded the plan a “step in the right direction” in fixing a dire justice system that often forces women to take on the burden after being in an abusive relationship.
Currently, “exclusion zones” stop offenders from entering a location where their victim lives. This often makes the victim feel trapped as they only know they are safe from their abuser within a small geographical area.
New “restriction zones” will instead put the onus on the perpetrator by “locking” them into specific areas and monitoring their movements using GPS tags. Offenders would face jail time for breaching the conditions. Probation officers will work with victims on the creation of restriction zones.
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Survivor Lee-Anne, 54, who was abused for 25 years across two relationships, welcomed the “brilliant” move. But she raised fears about how it will work in practice with little funding available, having had both her abusers breach their restraining orders in the past.
At domestic abuse charity Advance’s office in London, she told The Mirror: “How are we going to uphold this new system, if if we couldn’t uphold the previous one? I’m constantly on edge… He knows if he wants to get you, he doesn’t care where he’s allowed to go. You’re walking with that fear constantly.”
The mum continued: “What I’m worried about is lip service. We get a lot of lip service. And for me, actions speak louder than words, especially in this situation.
“Women are still dying at the hands of men. Men are still dying at the hands of women too, but I’m a woman, so I speak for my women, and it needs to stop. Men are not scared to hit women. Why is that? Because the judicial system is a joke.”
Helen, 50, from London, who was in an abusive relationship for 25 years, similarly criticised the current system. She said her abuser received no punishment despite breaching his restraining order seven times.
The victim-survivor, who suffered horrific mental and physical abuse, including being strangled five times, said she is “relieved” that the new restriction zones will shift the onus onto abusers. “It’s unbelievable how when a woman has finally got the courage by whatever means, to break away from her ex-abuser, the world is just thrown off balance for years,” she said.
“The aftermath of domestic abuse is actually worse than actually being in it, because you don’t know what’s happening to you… especially the criminal system.
“And the onus is always put on the woman for moving house, for her own safety, [or being asked] why didn’t you leave, and why did you have more children with him? And the focus is never actually on the perpetrator who commits attempted murder, GBH, ABH and these horrific crimes.”
Speaking about the new restriction zones, she admitted: “There’s a lot that can be improved but this is a step in the right direction to keep women and children safe. The quality of life will improve – the safety of me and my children. We won’t have to live in a heightened state.”
Amy Glover, Advance’s director of services, welcomed the announcement but added: “I’m interested to see how it’ll be rolled out in practice. For example, how will it be monitored? Because if you implement measures like this, and then they can’t be monitored effectively due to insufficient resourcing, etc, what you actually end up is creating a false sense of security for survivors.”
Victims minister Alex Davies-Jones told The Mirror: “For far too long, victims and survivors have told me that they don’t feel like the criminal justice system is working for them. They are fed up of having to feel like they’re in a prison. They feel like they’re having to always look over their shoulders wondering if they’re going to bump into their perpetrator in the streets or the supermarket, and that has to change.”
Ministers have announced a £700million investment for the Probation Service until 2028/29, as well as recruiting 1,300 new probation officers by March 2026. She said the Government was working to overhaul the system, from courts to prisons, adding: “I want to rebuild confidence in the criminal justice system.”
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