Safety Planning

Safety Planning

Your safety is the most important thing.

If you are living in an abusive relationship, you might need to think about…

  1. Have a list of important numbers handy e.g. police, Women’s Aid, Helpline, friends.
  2. Trusted friends or neighbours you could tell about the abuse. Ask them to contact the police if they hear angry voices or violent noises coming from your home.
  3. If you have children teach them to dial 999. Make up a code word that you will use if you need help.
  4. How you can get out of your house safely.
  5. Are there any weapons in the house? How could you get them out of the house.
  6. Where you could go? Even if you don’t plan to leave, consider ways of getting out of the house if you needed to.
  7. Pack an emergency bag of items that you need every day and hide it where it is easy to get.
  8. Review your safety plan often.

If you are considering leaving your abuser, think about…

  1. Places you could go if you leave your home.
  2. Who could help you if you left?
  3. People who could keep a bag for you.
  4. Make plans for your pets
  5. Keeping change for phone calls or keeping credit on your mobile phone.
  6. Get a spare set of car and house keys.
  7. Opening a bank account in your name.
  8. Gather together important documents, bank books, benefit cards, legal orders, record of medications.
  9. How you might leave? Times and opportunities for leaving the house safely.
  10. How you could take your children with you safely
  11. Putting together a bag of things that you need every day e.g. clothes, school uniforms and children’s favourite possessions.

Abusers try to control their victim’s lives. When they experience a loss of control, i.e. when victims try to leave them, the abuse gets worse. Women are at very high risk when they try to leave.

Get Help.

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