Unseen, unreported, unprotected: disabled Black African/Caribbean and South Asian women’s experiences of domestic violence and abuse in England

Background – Studies have shown that disabled women are more than twice as likely to be victims of violence compared to those who are not disabled. Also, the risk of violence is far higher for ethnic minority women compared to majority group. Despite the links made between violence and disability on one hand, and violence and ethnicity on the other, little is known about how the intersection of disability, ethnicity, and gender re/produces experiences of violence. This means that although support provisions are made through social care, we do not have the evidence regarding the nature/patterns of violence experienced by disabled ethnic minority women, risk factors, help-seeking and what effective social care intervention means for them, leading to gaps in support for victims/survivors. This research has been developed in response to these gaps in current knowledge and practice. It aims to learn from people with lived experience, specifically disabled Black African/Caribbean and South Asian women who have experienced domestic violence and abuse (DVA), and practitioners in disability and DVA services to generate evidence that will influence/change policy and practice and strengthen the way that social care is delivered to disabled ethnic minority women who experience DVA. Objectives: 1) develop knowledge about the nature of DVA experienced by Black African/Caribbean and South Asian women, risk factors and mechanisms that translate risk factors into actual acts of DVA, help-seeking and support, 2) investigate examples of good practice, barriers for interventions and identify areas for strengthening, 3) work with stakeholders to co-produce knowledge, design plans for service improvement and develop a cross-sectoral training package for disability and DVA services. 4) utilise our links with disability and DVA agencies to feed findings into local and national policies. Methods: We will interview disabled African/Caribbean and South Asian women who have experienced DVA to understand the types of DVA experienced, contributing factors, help-seeking and experiences of support. We will also interview practitioners in disability and DVA services to gather their views about supporting disabled ethnic minority women who experience DVA, barriers, and how these barriers may best be overcome. We will then bring participants together in a two half-day co-production event to discuss findings, consider barriers and facilitators linked to social care provisions, and identify the best way forward in improving/strengthening the way that social care is delivered to disabled ethnic minority women who experience DVA. Timeline for Delivery: The research will be delivered between June 2025 and May 2027. Anticipated impact and Dissemination: The evidence produced from the research and the cross-sectoral training package will enhance social care practitioners capacity to develop a consistent approach to identifying risks and safeguarding women affected. It will equip practitioners with policy and practice issues, thus, contributing to the development of a more focused response in tackling DVA against disabled ethnic minority women. We will work with disability and DVA organisations across England to implement these findings that are likely to develop knowledge and capacity on how to identify, prevent and respond to DVA against disabled ethnic minority women.