New data from Surviving Economic Abuse (SEA) reveals the hidden crisis harming children across the UK: economic abuse.
More than a quarter of UK mums (27%) with children under 18 have experienced economic abuse over the past year. This suggests that 3.9 million children are living in the shadow of economic abuse, with their mother’s abusive current or ex-partner controlling their family’s money and the things it can buy.
While domestic abusers cause harm every day of the year, there is an increase in survivors seeking help after the Christmas period. Economic abuse is a dangerous and often hidden form of domestic abuse. It devastates lives and impacts everyone in a household. Today’s research, conducted by Ipsos UK on behalf of SEA, exposes the scale of the impact of economic abuse on children over the last year:
- 1 in 7 (14%) mothers with children under 18 who experienced economic abuse said their child experienced poor mental health as a result of economic abuse.
- 1 in 6 (17%) said that they could not provide food, clothes or other essential items for their children.
- 1 in 5 (20%) said they felt afraid for their children’s safety or wellbeing because of their current or ex-partner’s economically abusive behaviour.
Sam Smethers, CEO of Surviving Economic Abuse, said: “Economic abuse is a dangerous form of coercive control and children are being harmed by it every day. Our research shows that perpetrators are stealing children’s pocket money, stopping mums accessing Child Benefit, and refusing to pay child support. Economic abuse means women and children go without at Christmas and every day of the year, with some pushed into poverty and homelessness.
“The Prime Minister has described economic abuse as a national emergency and it’s a scandal that so many mums and their children are living with its devastating consequences. We help families to escape economic abuse by providing vital online information to survivors and training professionals, like children’s services, to spot the signs of economic abuse.
“But we urgently need the government to publish its long-awaited VAWG strategy and prioritise tackling economic abuse. It must close the loopholes that allow abusers to manipulate systems, like child maintenance, to destroy lives. Victim-survivors and their children can’t wait any longer.”
Economic abuse is when a current or ex-partner controls a victim-survivor’s money and economic resources (housing, employment, food or clothing) to trap them in a dangerous situation and make it hard to escape and rebuild their lives. Abusive parents also use tactics that directly target their children’s economic security, with today’s data revealing that in the last 12 months:
- A third (33%) of women with children under 18 who experienced economic abuse from an ex-partner reported that they refused to pay child support, or paid it unreliably, despite being able to afford it.
- One in six (16%) victim-survivors with children under 18 reported that a current or ex-partner stole money from their child, such as their birthday or pocket money.
- One in six (16%) victim-survivors with children under 18 reported that a current or ex-partner stopped, or tried to stop, them accessing benefit payments that they or their children were entitled to.
Sarah* left her abusive ex-partner over 15 years ago after enduring emotional, economic and physical abuse. She continues to experience post-separation abuse to this day. Forced by the abuser to give up her career, Sarah was then left solely responsible for their small children. Shortly after separation, Sarah’s ex stopped paying all child maintenance and his agreed share of the joint mortgage.
What followed were years of financial precarity, where she tried to keep her family’s head above water while navigating court proceedings to secure the child maintenance her children were entitled to. Forced to rely on food banks and go without heating in winter to make ends meet, Sarah said:
“However much you might try to shield your kids, they know when the house is freezing, they know when they can’t go on school trips, they know that we’re one surprise bill away from a food bank. My ex would stop maintenance payments right before Christmas, knowing it would leave the kids disappointed and confused and me suddenly left scrabbling to put food on the table at all.
“One year, in a fit of jealousy that I was speaking to friends on the new laptop I’d saved all year to buy, my ex smashed up the entire house, ripping down the tree and smashing the children’s new toys. He made me return the laptop the next day – and kept the money. I left him years ago, but the economic abuse means me and the kids have never been free of him.”
Sarah’s children, now adults, share their side of the story. Speaking about his experience, her son Ben* reflects: “Even though Mum would do her best to protect us, she wasn’t able to hide the fact that the cupboards and fridge weren’t as full as they usually were. I think we all knew there wasn’t enough food to go around as Mum would make excuses about not being hungry, or saying she had already eaten. I’ve deliberately left food on my plate, knowing that would be all that she ate that day. It was only when I was older that I found out how tirelessly she fought to get the financial support we are entitled to, and the horrible ordeal she went through to get there.”
Her daughter, Hannah*, says: “I can always remember being scared to bring trip letters home, knowing that my mum would have to sacrifice something to make sure I could go. It’s only now that I am having to fend for myself at university that I can see how hard it is to make a small amount of money go a long way. My mum has always worked so hard to make sure we didn’t miss out, whilst being put under severe distress by my father.”
No child should have their childhood shattered by economic abuse. SEA provides vital online resources and signposts families to sources of support alongside campaigning to deliver vital changes to the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) to prevent abusers from continuing to cause harm after they have fled. SEA’s work includes:
- Raising awareness of economic abuse and offering vital information so families can escape economic abuse.
- Training professionals, like children’s services, to spot and respond to economic abuse.
- Campaigning for law change, like reforming the CMS, so children get the financial help they are entitled to.
As a result of SEA’s influencing work, the Government committed to bringing forward legislation to make the CMS safer for survivors and to introduce a fee for non-compliant parents. The charity is calling on the Government to bring forward promised reforms to the CMS without delay and close loopholes in the system that allow abusers to cause harm.
ENDS
For further information or to arrange an interview with a victim-survivor or SEA spokesperson, please contact the Surviving Economic Abuse press office on: [email protected] / 07786 073249
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