Children's voices need to be heard when tackling domestic abuse

The voices of children affected by domestic abuse must be heard and considered in police investigations and prosecutions, the chief inspector of criminal justice has said.

Jacqui Durkin said a failure to adequately respond to what children experienced in their homes required urgent action.

More three years after legislation to tackle domestic abuse was implemented, she said this remained a fundamental weakness.

Det Ch Supt Zoe McKee said the force is committed to ensuring victims voices are heard.

In the latest review of the Domestic Abuse and Civil Proceedings Act (Northern Ireland) 2021, Durkin said the the number of cases where child aggravators were applied remained "very low".

Child aggravators are legal provisions that enhance sentences when a child under 18 is present, witnesses, or is used to facilitate domestic abuse.

"When the abuse is recognised as being heightened or 'aggravated', judges can impose enhanced sentences when a perpetrator is convicted at court," Durkin said in a statement.

Speaking to BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster, Durkin said the 2021 Act established aggravators which "relate specifically to children where a child is a victim or where there is a relevant child and that means where a child has been present or has experienced that domestic abuse".

A review of 73 police investigation files and 76 prosecution files found that the identification and application of child aggravators remained inconsistent and were, in many cases, absent.

"The act's clear intention was to recognise the trauma and impact of domestic abuse on all victims," Durkin said in the statement.

"It established a legal obligation to identify any child who was a victim of domestic abuse, or a child who saw, heard or was present when the abuse occurred or was used by a perpetrator to facilitate abuse at a victim."

In 2024-25, one fifth of all recorded crimes in Northern Ireland had a domestic abuse motivation and 16,025 referrals were made to education providers about children.

Durkin said this finding on the use of child aggravators is "at odds" with the high number of domestic abuse incidents police attended where children were present.

"The failure to adequately hear and respond to the voices of children and what they had experienced in their home was a fundamental weakness in the implementation of the act that requires urgent action," she said.

She told Good Morning Ulster that the implementation of the act "really needs skilled officers" to be able to "recognise when a child is present or has been in the home or has witnessed that abuse or is being used by another parent or caregiver to support the abuse that they are perpetrating".

She said there is training taking place to help officers.

Inspectors also found the quality and consistency of training provided to police officers, prosecutors and Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals staff was a "significant concern and had declined over time".

The amount of dedicated domestic abuse training provided to student officers within the Police Service of Northern Ireland's (PSNI) police foundation training was also found to be "inadequate".

In response the the CJI report, Det Ch Supt Zoe McKee said: "Domestic abuse remains a service priority and we are fully committed to delivering for victims and bringing offenders to justice.

"We have already commenced a body of work to ensure the voices of children who are impacted by domestic abuse cases are clearly heard and feature in investigations.

"Anything we can do to better safeguard victims and children who are impacted by domestic abuse, will be a priority."

She added that the PSNI is working with their IT systems to implement a "technical solution that assists officers in seamlessly adding child aggravators to case files".

Officers have also attended a series of domestic abuse awareness sessions.

Dr Richard Scullion, the Public Prosecution Service's (PPS) Head of Policy and Information, said tackling domestic abuse remains a "key strategic priority".

"Since the introduction of the 2021 Act, significant progress has been made across the criminal justice system, and the quality of our prosecutorial decision making remains high.

"However, we recognise that more must be done collectively to improve outcomes for victims, including children and young people.

"The Domestic Violence and Abuse Working Group, co-chaired by the PSNI and the PPS, will be working in the coming months to agree an action plan to address the findings of the report," Scullion said.

"A specific focus will be placed on the voices of children and the appropriate use of child aggravators."