The most dangerous place for a woman is her home. Society must recognise it to bring change

A dark street. A late-night bus. Even a park in broad daylight. These are the places we’re warned about, spaces we’re told to fear. Yet violence against women and girls (VAWG) is not confined to unlit routes or shadowed corners. It permeates every environment and every part of our society. This International Women’s Day, we cannot look away from this crisis.

Widespread fears and myths about strangers have long dominated conversations around VAWG. But the devastating truth is that women are most likely to be harmed by someone they know. Perhaps even more heartbreaking is the fact that the most dangerous place for a woman is her home.

As the CEO of Refuge, the UK’s largest specialist domestic abuse charity, I have heard many women describe the fear they lived with behind closed doors. For these women, the place that should have offered safety instead became a prison created by their perpetrator. That’s why Refuge launched Home is Where the Hurt is – a campaign designed to confront this difficult truth and shine a light on the danger millions of women face in their own homes.

Read more:

• “How we define ‘sexual exploitation’ is fuelling violence against women and girls”
• “How all men can join the fight to end violence against women”
• ‘There was no way out’: Survivors of domestic abuse forced to stay with abusers or face destitution

New data released as part of the campaign reveals that public perception of this issue is worryingly inconsistent. The poll, conducted by YouGov on our behalf, found that more than half of UK adults (57%) acknowledge the home is where women are most at risk of abuse, despite 85% believing that most people feel safe there.

Women are more likely to recognise the risk, with 62% identifying the home as the most common setting for abuse, compared with 52% of men. Yet misconceptions remain. When asked where women are most commonly abused, 14% of respondents said outdoor public spaces such as parks, 10% cited the street, 5% public transport, and 4% the workplace. A further 10% said they did not know.

These responses highlight a tendency to overestimate the threat posed by strangers in public spaces, while underestimating the risks posed by partners, ex-partners and family members behind closed doors.

The poll also highlights gaps in awareness around how abuse is evolving inside the home. Four in 10 UK adults (42%) say they have heard nothing at all about abusers monitoring, manipulating, or controlling women through technology such as smart devices. Meanwhile, Refuge’s dedicated Technology-Facilitated Abuse and Economic Empowerment team saw referrals rise by 62% in the first nine months of 2025 compared with the same period in 2024.

This misunderstanding has real-world consequences. When society fails to recognise where the greatest risk lies, it becomes harder for survivors not only to be believed, but also to access the support they deserve. Abuse in the home is often hidden and continues to be dismissed as a private matter – allowing it to escalate unchecked.

The consequences can be fatal. In the year ending March 2025, 75 women were killed by a current or former partner or family member in England and Wales. The majority of these women were killed at home.

At Refuge, we often hear from survivors who are afraid that if they cannot escape their home, their abuser will kill them. While thousands of women and their children have found safety through our network of 65 refuges, many more are, at this very moment, still living in homes defined by fear and control.

Despite repeated calls from charities such as Refuge, the government’s recent VAWG Strategy failed to address the £55.5 million annual shortfall in funding for refuges and other forms of safe accommodation. Without sufficient refuge provisions, women will be forced to remain in dangerous homes.

We want every survivor to know that support is out there, but long-term change requires urgent government action to create safe spaces and meaningful protections for women and girls.

Next week, Refuge will be taking this message to Parliament. We will be calling on the government to act now by investing in domestic abuse safe accommodation to prevent more women from being harmed or killed in their own homes. We will also be inviting the public to sign an open letter to the prime minister, and we encourage as many people as possible to add their names.

Every woman deserves to feel safe in her own home, and this International Women’s Day, we must do more than celebrate progress – we must stand up for the many women and girls who are still in danger.

Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? Get in touch and tell us more. 

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