Making a Safety Plan

Having a personal safety plan is essential if you or your children are suffering abuse or living in a violent home.

This personal safety plan has been designed with safety in mind, whether you stay in the relationship or choose to leave.

In an emergency the most important single factor is the physical safety of yourself and any children you may have. These are some steps to follow but please remember that every woman's situation is different, you may need to take all or only some of these steps and not necessarily in this order.

Safety during a violent incident

•  If an argument seems unavoidable, try to have it in a room or area where you have access to an exit. Try to stay away from the bathroom, kitchen, bedroom or anywhere else where weapons might be available.

•  Practice how to get out of your home safely. Identify which doors, windows, elevator or stairwell would be best.

•  Have a bag packed ready and keep it at a relative's or friend's home in order to leave quickly.

•  Identify one or more neighbors you can tell about the violence and ask that they call the police if they hear a disturbance coming from your home.

•  Devise a codeword to use with your children, family, friends and neighbours when you need them to call the police.

•  Decide and plan for where you will go if you have to leave home (even if you don't think you will ever need to).

If you've left your partner, but are still in danger:

•  Change the locks, and put locks on the window.

•  Ask the police for advice on making your home more secure.

•  Tell school who can pick up your children and who cannot.

•  Report injuries to your GP so there is a record of the abuse.

•  See a solicitor. They can help you with court orders to prevent your partner assaulting you, and make you aware of your legal rights.

If you're still living with the abuser, think about how to protect yourself and your children.

•  Be ready to call 999 if you or your children are in danger.

•  Keep some money and a set of keys in a safe place.

•  Find out about your legal and housing rights. e.g. talk to a solicitor.

•  Keep copies of important papers (passport, birth certificate, court order, marriage certificate) in a safe place.

•  Carry a list of emergency numbers: police, relatives, friends, refuge.

•  Tell someone you trust about the abuse.

•  Make calls from a phone box or a friend's house.

•  Report any injuries to your GP so there is a record of the abuse.

•  Talk to family and friends about staying with them in an emergency.

•  Think about escape routes.

Looking after yourself is important. Do something you enjoy. Taking time to read a book, walk in the park or listen to some music help you feel more able to deal with what is happening. Above all, remember the abuse is not your fault.

Are you a man experiencing Domestic Abuse?

You may feel as if you’re the only man who has ever experienced domestic abuse – you are not alone.  Although research shows that it is mainly women who experience domestic abuse, this doesn’t mean that men don’t suffer too.

At the Rising Sun we aim to offer: 

• • Listening support on the phone; you can talk anonymously
  • Advice on personal safety
  • Help in accessing other services available including local councils, and other support services
  • Signposting to Legal services (including solicitors who can help)
  •  Men have the same rights as women to be safe in their own homes and are protected exactly the same laws as women. All statutory services (such as the police, Criminal Prosecution Service, housing departments and social services) have a duty to provide services to all, whatever their gender
  •  If you are a man experiencing domestic abuse and you need emergency help you can call the police on 999 

Safe Browsing

The following information is taken from the Women's Aid website,www.womensaid.org.uk, and is protected by copyright to Women's Aid Federation of England (© 2006 Women's Aid Federation of England).

 
Warning: if you are worried about someone knowing you have visited this website please read the following safety information.

How can an abuser discover your internet activities?

Please take a few minutes to read the warning below and to take steps to increase your safety when visiting this website.

As a rule, internet browsers will save certain information as you surf the internet. This includes images from websites visited, information entered into search engines and a trail ('history') that reveals the sites you have visited. Please follow the instructions below to minimize the chances of someone finding out that you have visited this website.

If you know what browser you are using, then skip to the relevant instructions below. If you do not know the type of browser you are using, click on Help on the toolbar at the top of the browser screen. A drop down menu will appear, the last entry will say About Internet Explorer, About Mozilla Firefox, or something similar. The entry refers to which browser type you are using - you should then refer to the relevant instructions below.

Internet Explorer:

Click on the Tools menu and select Internet Options. On the General page, under Temporary Internet Files, click on Delete Cookies and then OK. Click on Delete Files, put a tick in the box labeled Delete all offline content and click OK. Under History, click on Clear History and then OK. Now look at the top of the window and click on the Content tab, select AutoComplete and finally, Clear Forms.

Firefox/Netscape:

Click on Tools and then Options, then click on Privacy. Click on the Clear button next to Cache and Saved Form Information.

Opera:

Click on Tools and then Preferences. Click on the Advanced tab and then the History section on the left hand side. Click the two Clear buttons and the Empty Now button.

Deleting your browsing history:

Internet browsers also keep a record of all the web pages you visit. This is known as a 'history'. To delete history for Internet Explorer and Netscape/Firefox hold down the Ctrl key on the keyboard, then press the H key (Crtl, Alt and H for Opera). Find any entries that say www.womensaid.org.uk, right click and choose Delete.

E-mail:

If an abuser sends you threatening or harassing e-mail messages, they may be printed and saved as evidence of this abuse. Any email you have previously sent will be stored in Sent Items. If you started an email but didn't finish it, it might be in your Drafts folder. If you reply to any email, the original message will probably be in the body of the message - print and delete the email if you dont want anyone to see your original message.

When you delete an item in any email program (Outlook Express, Outlook, Thunderbird etc) it does not really delete the item - it moves the item to a folder called Deleted Items. You have to delete the items in deleted items separately. Right click on items within the Deleted Items folder to delete individual items.

General security:

If you do not use a password to log on to your computer, someone else will be able to access your email and track your internet usage. The safest way to find information on the internet, would be at a local library, a friend's house, or at work.

All of the above information may not completely hide your tracks. Many browser types have features that display recently visited sites. The safest way to find information on the internet, would be at a local library, a friend's house, or at work.