What is domestic abuse?

The Royal Borough of Kingston operates under Domestic Abuse Act 2021 definition, which is:

1. This section defines 'domestic abuse' for the purposes of this Act.

2. Behaviour of a person (A) towards another person (B) is 'domestic abuse' if:

   (a) A and B are each aged 16 or over and are personally connected to each other, and (b) the behaviour is abusive.

3. Behaviour is abusive if it consists of any of the following: 
   (a) physical or sexual abuse 
   (b) violent or threatening behaviour 
   (c) controlling or coercive behaviour 
   (d) economic abuse              

Controlling behaviour

This is a range of acts designed to make a person subordinate and/or dependent by isolating them from sources of support, exploiting their resources and capacities for personal gain, depriving them of the means needed for independence, resistance and escape and regulating their everyday behaviour.

Coercive behaviour

This is an act or a pattern of acts of assault, threats, humiliation and intimidation or other abuse used to harm, punish, or frighten the victim.

This definition, which is not a legal definition, includes so called ‘honour’ based violence, female genital mutilation (FGM) and forced marriage. Victims are not confined to one gender or ethnic group.

For more information on our response to domestic and sexual violence, please email us at: vawg@kingston.gov.uk to request a copy of our full Ending VAWG strategy.