Domestic abuse victims urge Scottish government action on safety Edinburgh 2026

Key Points

• Domestic abuse victims and advocacy groups warn that more women face fatal risks unless the Scottish Government speeds up structural interventions and funding.
• Campaigners point to severe delays in fully implementing legislation, particularly key protective measures under the Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act.
• Local council resource shortages have created critical bottlenecks across social housing, emergency refuges, and legal aid provision.
• Police Scotland figures show domestic abuse incidents remain at record highs, with over 64,000 cases reported annually.
• Third-sector organisations say vulnerable women will be forced to stay with violent partners without immediate, dedicated funding for crisis accommodation and court advocacy services.

Edinburgh (Edinburgh Daily) September 16, 2026 – Domestic abuse survivors and frontline advocacy groups have issued an urgent warning to ministers, stating that women will continue to lose their lives unless the Scottish Government takes swift, systemic action to address critical gaps in protective services and emergency accommodation.

Representatives from leading charities, including Scottish Women’s Aid, alongside individual victims, have highlighted that despite progressive legislative frameworks, operational delays and severe funding shortfalls are leaving vulnerable individuals exposed to high-risk environments. According to statistics from Police Scotland, authorities recorded more than 64,000 incidents of domestic abuse over the past year, reflecting an ongoing crisis across all local authority regions.

Advocates contend that while statutory protections such as the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 criminalized coercive and controlling behaviour, the practical mechanisms designed to keep victims safe are failing due to resource constraints. Frontline services report that temporary housing shortages, long court backlogs, and restricted access to civil legal aid frequently force women to choose between returning to abusive partners or facing homelessness.

As reported by legal correspondent Fiona Thomson of The Herald, survivors who submitted evidence to parliamentary committees described feeling “systematically let down” by delays in enforcing protective notices. The joint statement from survivor networks directly appeals to First Minister John Swinney and Cabinet Secretaries to prioritize emergency funding, warning that failure to enforce existing legal powers directly compromises victim safety.

What are victims and advocacy groups demanding from the Scottish Government?

Campaigners and survivor collectives are calling for the immediate, full implementation of the Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act, which was passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2021. As reported by social affairs editor Mark McLaughlin of The Times, key powers within Part 1 of the 2021 legislation—which would grant Police Scotland and the courts the authority to remove suspected abusers from the family home and issue short-term Domestic Abuse Protection Notices (DAPNs) and Orders (DAPOs)—have faced prolonged administrative delays.

According to Dr Marsha Scott, Chief Executive of Scottish Women’s Aid, the delay in deploying these protective court orders places the financial and physical burden of fleeing violence entirely on the victim. Speaking to domestic media outlets, Dr Scott stated: “Women and children are still the ones being forced to leave their homes, their schools, and their support networks, while perpetrators remain in place. Until police and courts can remove the abuser swiftly, we are effectively penalizing the victim for seeking safety.”

Advocacy groups are requesting three primary structural measures:

1. Immediate commencement of DAPNs and DAPOs: Enabling authorities to ban abusive partners from a shared residence for up to three months.
2. Ring-fenced funding for specialist refuges: Ensuring local authorities maintain adequate single-sex emergency housing units that meet Istanbul Convention standards.
3. Legal aid expansion: Removing income eligibility hurdles that prevent domestic abuse survivors from securing non-harassment and occupation orders through civil courts.

How severe is the crisis in housing and support services across Scotland?

The availability of secure accommodation remains one of the primary obstacles for domestic abuse victims attempting to leave dangerous relationships. According to data compiled by the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) Scotland and Scottish Women’s Aid, local councils across Scotland are struggling under severe social housing shortages. As reported by property and policy journalist Sarah Collins of Inside Housing, several major Scottish councils have declared local housing emergencies, directly impacting their ability to offer suitable temporary housing to women fleeing domestic violence.

In many cases, victims presenting as homeless are placed in unsuitable temporary accommodation, such as mixed-sex bed and breakfasts or hotels, where support services are non-existent and security is minimal. As reported by reporter Jane Hamilton of the Daily Record, one anonymous survivor stated: “I left a violent partner only to be put into a hostel where I felt equally unsafe. When the system offers no safe haven, women go back—and that is when the worst outcomes happen.”

While the Scottish Government recently enacted measures under Part 2 of the Domestic Abuse (Protection) Act—allowing social landlords to transfer tenancies away from perpetrators to protect victims—housing providers emphasize that policy changes alone cannot resolve the fundamental shortage of physical housing units.

How is Police Scotland responding to domestic abuse incidents?

Police Scotland reports that domestic abuse remains one of its highest operational priorities, accounting for a substantial proportion of all violent crime calls handled by officers. According to official police statistics, approximately 80% to 81% of reported incidents involve a female victim and a male perpetrator, with incidents recorded consistently every nine minutes across the country.

Speaking on behalf of Police Scotland’s National Domestic Abuse Taskforce, Detective Chief Superintendent Sam McCluskey highlighted that law enforcement remains committed to investigating coercive control and physical assault under statutory guidelines. However, senior officers acknowledge that policing represents only one component of the justice pipeline. Once an arrest is made, delays within the Sheriff Courts often mean accused individuals are released on bail under conditions that survivors fear are difficult to enforce effectively.

As reported by crime correspondent Alan Ritchie of the Scotsman, victim advocacy services have pointed out that court backlogs accumulated over recent years have lengthened the period between initial charge and final trial, subjecting survivors to months of prolonged anxiety and risk.

What is the Scottish Government’s official position on the warnings?

In response to the concerns raised by victims and third-sector organizations, the Scottish Government stated that it remains dedicated to tackling violence against women and girls through its overarching ‘Equally Safe’ strategy. A spokesperson for the Scottish Government highlighted recent statutory achievements, including the establishment of the ‘Fund to Leave’, designed to provide direct financial grants to victims helping them cover immediate relocation costs.

As reported by political correspondent Andrew Learmonth of The National, a Scottish Government spokesperson stated: “Domestic abuse is an abhorrent crime, and no woman should be made to feel unsafe in her own home or community. We have introduced some of the most robust legislation in Europe to criminalize psychological and physical abuse, and we continue to invest tens of millions annually in specialist victim support services.”

Ministers maintain that technical and operational preparations are ongoing to ensure that court-issued protection orders can be enforced effectively without creating procedural errors that could compromise criminal prosecutions. However, opposition politicians and campaign leaders argue that administrative progress has moved too slowly relative to the immediate dangers reported on the ground.

Background of the particular development

Scotland’s legislative approach to domestic violence underwent a major evolution with the passage of the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018, which came into force in April 2019. The Act was widely acclaimed by international legal experts for creating a specific criminal offence covering a “course of behavior,” explicit inclusion of coercive control, psychological manipulation, and economic abuse alongside physical violence.

To build upon this statutory foundation, the Scottish Parliament passed the Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act in March 2021. This legislation was designed specifically to fill a known gap in civil and emergency protections by providing police and courts with statutory powers to remove a perpetrator from a residence immediately, preventing the victim from becoming homeless.

However, implementation has been staggered over several years. While statutory guidance and social housing provisions (Part 2) have gradually progressed, Part 1—encompassing the emergency police protection notices—required secondary regulations, judicial training, and operational frameworks that faced repeated timeline extensions. Compounded by post-pandemic public sector budget constraints and a nationwide crisis in local authority housing stock, frontline refuge providers have found themselves operating at maximum capacity, giving rise to the current emergency appeals from survivors and advocacy coalitions.

Prediction: How this development could affect domestic abuse survivors and public services

If the Scottish Government moves swiftly to enforce emergency protective orders and inject targeted capital into emergency housing, the structural dynamics for domestic abuse victims in Scotland could improve noticeably over the next 12 to 24 months.

• Impact on Survivors and Families: Full activation of Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPOs) will shift the immediate operational burden away from victims. Rather than mothers and children being forced to pack emergency belongings and relocate to temporary shelters, perpetrators will be legally barred from the residence. This stability will allow children to remain in their local schools and preserve access to community support networks.
• Impact on Local Authority Housing and Homelessness: In the medium term, permitting victims to remain safely in their tenancies will alleviate immediate demand spikes on local council homeless departments. However, if social housing construction remains static, councils will continue to face high costs associated with emergency placements, potentially leading to legal challenges from housing rights groups.
• Impact on the Justice System and Police Resources: Police Scotland may see an initial increase in call-outs and breach prosecutions as new protection orders take effect. While this will require dedicated administrative capacity, clear judicial orders could streamline intervention procedures, allowing officers to arrest repeat offenders before escalation leads to severe physical harm or domestic homicides.
• Consequences of Inaction: Conversely, should implementation remain stalled, advocacy groups predict that court backlogs and housing shortages will continue to deter victims from reporting abuse. Without secure shelter or rapid legal protection, higher rates of repeat victimization and preventable fatalities remain significant risks.