Leighton Buzzard charity launches campaign to tackle domestic abuse during pregnancy
A Leighton Buzzard charity has launched a new awareness campaign aimed at tackling the hidden crisis of domestic abuse during pregnancy and early stages of motherhood.
Home-Start Bedfordshire hopes its ‘MUM’S the Word’ campaign will be used to break the silence on domestic abuse during pregnancy.
The charity, based in Hockliffe Road, says statistically pregnancy is a high-risk period for the onset or escalation of domestic abuse. And it’s estimated that between 40 per cent and 60 per cent of victims are abused while pregnant.
The ‘MUM’S the Word’ campaign seeks to dispel the myths surrounding domestic abuse, help mothers recognise the signs of coercive control, and point to services available for families across the county.
The campaign uses the acronym M.U.M.S. to help victims identify signs of abuse: feeling Manipulated, Undermined, Monitored, or Scared. It says this is a different approach, focusing on the emotions victims might experience.
“Talking about domestic abuse during pregnancy is fundamentally upsetting. It’s a difficult public conversation, but it needs to be had. The idea of someone harming a pregnant woman seems unimaginable. Yet, for too many, it is reality” says Linda Johnson, chief executive at Home-Start Bedfordshire.
“There’s a link between domestic abuse starting or intensifying when a woman is at her most vulnerable, during pregnancy. The statistics reflect the sometimes harrowing stories I’ve heard from survivors. Through ‘MUM’S the Word,’ we want to tell every mother in our Home-Start Bedfordshire. charity community that if you feel manipulated, undermined, monitored, or scared, support is available through the Bedfordshire Domestic Abuse Partnership.”
The campaign highlights the severe risks that abuse poses to both mother and baby, including miscarriage, premature birth, and long-term impacts on a child’s brain development.
It also emphasises that children are “silent victims” of abuse, even if they only see or hear the effects of it.
Established in 1984, Home-Start Bedfordshire is supported by volunteers, supporters and staff members dedicated to supporting families with young children across the county. Through projects like Own My Life and Helping Hands, the charity helps survivors of domestic abuse regain control of their lives and teaches children about healthy relationships.