Nottinghamshire hair salons to be trained to recognise domestic abuse

Hair and beauty professionals with charity and council representatives at the 'Cut it Out' launch.

In partnership with Eastwood-based domestic abuse charity Broxtowe Women’s Project, local charity Equation has launched the ‘Cut it Out’ campaign to give hairstylists the tools to spot and respond to domestic violence and abuse.

‘Cut it Out’ offers a new way for salon professionals to help their clients who may be living with abuse.

The initiative is set to provide free online training to salons in Nottinghamshire, and follow-up support from trained domestic abuse specialists.

The campaign was launched at an awareness event for hairdressers, barbers and beauticians, attended by the Mayor of Broxtowe councillor Richard Macrae and other Broxtowe Borough Council representatives last month.

The campaign was originally launched in Norfolk after the death of Kerri McAuley, who was killed in 2017 by her abusive partner.

Before her death Kerri had talked to her hairdresser about her abuse.

Chris Harris, partnership manager for Broxtowe Women’s Project, who spoke at the event, said: “Those who work in hair and beauty know only too well that they are often trusted with confidences, or that they are close enough to clients physically and emotionally to notice changes.

“This event has helped equipped them with some useful knowledge and was also the start of their awareness journey.”

Statistics show that one in four women and one in six men experience domestic abuse at some point in their lives.

Anna Clark, CEO of Equation, added: “Domestic abuse is about much more than physical violence. It involves patterns of threatening and coercive behaviour that is used to control someone.

“There is a lot of specialist help available for anyone experiencing it.

“This campaign is about getting that knowledge into the community – and creating a network of supportive individuals who are confident in spotting signs and who are able to say the right things at the right time to those who need it. ”

The free online training will be held from May onwards.

Salons can find out more about the campaign and register for free training here.