Jewish Women’s Aid reports nearly 25 per cent increase in demand

A charity which supports women affected by domestic abuse in the Jewish community has reported an almost 25 per cent increase in the number of women who sought their help in the past year.

Jewish Women’s Aid told the JC that they had provided services to 24 per cent more clients between 2023 and 2024 compared to the year before, up from 659 to 816 women.

They also revealed a 64 per cent increase in the number of women seeking help after suffering sexual violence – from 28 to 46.

Sam Clifford, CEO of JWA said that the figures reflected more awareness of their services in the community, thanks to initiatives such as the recent Jewish Women’s Aid Shabbat, when some rabbis addressed the issue in their sermons.

“These types of events means that people, including clergy, are talking about domestic abuse far more openly and helping to break down the stigma. One person who got in touch with us soon after the JWA Shabbat said that her rabbi had suggested she contacted us.”

The charity also had stalls outside several kosher shops on the Friday before the Shabbat began. “The women on the stalls all said that at least one person had come up to them and said they had used our services,” said Clifford, adding: “It’s now very rare for me to go somewhere and for someone not to come up to me to say that they are or have been a JWA client.”

Across the UK, one in four women experience abuse, one in five face sexual assault, and domestic violence accounts for 18 per cent of all violent crime. Domestic abuse constitutes emotional, financial, physical, sexual, coercion and spiritual, said Clifford.

“Jewish women, regardless of religious denomination or social background, are equally affected,” said Clifford.

Coercion includes behaviour such as gas-lighting, and spiritual abuse in the Jewish community might mean withholding a get or raping a partner when she is niddah (menstruating or has not yet visited the mikveh following her period), when Jewish law prohibits sexual relations.

“We see all types of abuse, and it doesn’t affect one denomination of Judaism more than another. Our service is for all Jewish women who are experiencing or who have experienced domestic abuse. It affects everyone, but it might just present differently.”

Despite the increase in demand, domestic abuse and sexual violence was, said Clifford, “always underreported” and many women were “suffering in silence”.

On average, a woman in an abusive relationships takes four to five years to seek help, whereas in the Jewish community, that figure was more like nine to ten years, according to Clifford. “By the time a woman calls us, they will usually have been experiencing domestic abuse for a very long time.”

Clifford said that data had shown a surge in demand for their services a few weeks after October 7. “For some women, the sexual violence which took place that day in southern Israel triggered their experiences of historical sexual violence. For some people who were in mixed-faith relationships, antisemitism became part of the abuse, and for others, who may previously have contacted a mainstream support service, the increase in antisemitism meant that they felt more comfortable contacting us.”

The increase following October 7 was also, she said, due to the timing of the events. “In wider society, the incidents of domestic abuse often go up after Christmas and new year, when families have spent a lot of time together. In the Jewish community, we find this to be the case after the High Holy Days.”

Clifford said that they had seen a “small increase” in the number of Israeli women who were reaching out to JWA and that they were able to offer counselling in Hebrew, as well as translation services in Hebrew and other languages.

JWA offers counselling as well as support from independent sexual violence advisers, who work with survivors of rape and sexual assault. They can also assist clients with financial advice and legal support.

The charity also reported an almost ten per cent increase in the number of children affected by domestic abuse it supported last year, up from 409 to 445 from the previous year. The number of counselling sessions with children went up by 63 per cent from 410 to 671 sessions.

The key to tacking domestic abuse of any nature was “creating a community which isn’t tolerant of abuse”, said Clifford.

The charity runs a schools’ programme to promote healthy relationships and a culture of consent.

They also work with youth and students and train professionals working in the Jewish community on what constitutes domestic abuse and what signs to look out for, including a recent sessions for rabbis and rebbetzins. They also run cultural sensitivity training for organisations such as the Metropolitan Police

While the support services they provide are “completely women- centred”, it was imperative to have “men and boys as allies” in tackling domestic abuse, said Clifford. “Domestic abuse is not a women’s issue, but a societal one.”

Relatives and friends also have an important role to play. “If a family member or friend tells you they have been abused, listen to them, believe them and signpost them to us.”

Jessica (not her real name), a domestic abuse survivor, said: “Jewish Women’s Aid was there for me when no one else could be. They helped me recognise what was happening to me and my child and allowed me to safely escape my increasingly dangerous situation.”

Jewish Women’s Aid has an annual budget of £1 .6 million annually to run and relies on the community for 90 per cent of its funding.

For more information on Jewish Women’s Aid, go to: jwa.org.uk or click here

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