Sheffield City Council has reaffirmed their commitment to tackling violence against women and girls as figures show a national increase in domestic violence rates this year.
According to CPS data, convictions flagged as involving domestic abuse in England and Wales increased by 2.3% between April and June 2025.
One item proposed by the Domestic and Sexual Abuse Annual Report, published this week, is reaccreditation with the White Ribbon campaign.
White Ribbon UK is part of the global White Ribbon movement to end men’s violence against women that works with individuals, organisations, and policymakers towards wholesale culture change to prevent violence before it starts.
Councillor Fran Belbin, Deputy Leader of Sheffield City Council, said: “This year’s annual review shows how a partnership approach has been essential to providing much needed support, that has been welcomed by those who use domestic and sexual abuse services.
“As a White Ribbon Council, we aim to make Sheffield a safe and equal place for all. We will never be silent about violence against women and girls in our city.”
The impact so far
The council’s report stated that over 11,000 calls were handled by the Sheffield Domestic Abuse Helpline, 88 safe accommodation units were provided city-wide.
524 young people attended sessions on healthy relationships, and 1559 professionals were trained in domestic abuse prevention.
It also said that learning from Domestic Homicide Reviews has resulted in new practice guidance being published on adult family violence, the use of interpreters in Domestic/Sexual Abuse cases, and post-separation abuse.
Through implementing the White Ribbon action plan, the council has commissioned ‘effective and high-quality’ support for victims/survivors, children, and people causing harm who want to change their behaviour.
It has continued to roll out of the Safe and Together model in Children’s services, and worked to encourage other organisations such as schools and colleges to engage with the programme.
But it also acknowledged that more work is needed in this area.
Rising wait times and cases
At the end of 2024/25, there were 242 cases waiting to be heard in the Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC), with an average wait time of 10 weeks.
It also states that usage of the local domestic abuse helpline is at an all-time high since its establishment in 2010.
The Office for National Statistics estimates that 10.6% of people in England and Wales were victims of domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking in the year ending March 2025.
The number of cases reported across the region reflects this national increase.
In November 2024, Yorkshire and the Humber had a domestic abuse related crime rate of 18.6 per 1,000 people.
In rural North Yorkshire, local charity IDAS reported a 9% increase in referrals for the first nine months of 2024/25 compared to the same period the previous year.
Speaking to the Strategy and Resources Policy Committee on 15 October, Detective Superintendent Diane Johnson from South Yorkshire Police said: “Domestic abuse clearly remains a priority.”
Alison Higgins, Strategic Commissioning Manager for domestic and sexual abuse at Sheffield City Council, announced that on White Ribbon Day – 25 November – they will be hosting a celebration event where schools in the area can showcase the positive work they do to tackle these issues.
She said: “This feels like a real step forward in Sheffield.”