PEGS has received £17,666 from the Commissioner to support domestic abuse services in Derby and Derbyshire.

This will help us in our work to assist parents, carers and guardians experiencing abusive or violent behaviour from their child (of any age from pre-school to adulthood and beyond).

Child to Parent Abuse (CPA) is thought to impact up to one in ten families, with behaviours including physical, emotional and financial abuse as well as coercion and control, damage to property and abuse towards siblings and pets too.

We will use the grant to run four of our tailor-made nine-week Empowering Parents in Crisis (EPIC) programmes, designed to reduce feelings of isolation, guilty and blame which the majority of their parents report experiencing.

EPIC includes information about safety and risk, trauma responses, reacting and responding, behaviour and communication, working with professionals, and the importance of self-care.

Our Founding Director Michelle John said: “A huge thank you to the Commissioner and her team for the grant – CPA is often a hidden form of domestic abuse so for the Police and Crime Commissioner to recognise it alongside intimate partner abuse is significant.

“PEGS supports hundreds of parents impacted by CPA by providing advocacy, one-to-one sessions, counselling and a closed online peer support group.

“We also train professionals such as police forces and social care teams so they can recognise the potential signs of CPA, and feel confident they know how to respond if they either suspect CPA or it’s confirmed by the parent.

“Alongside this, we are working with a number of national and regional authorities to introduce or revise their policies specifically around Child to Parent Abuse.”

Police Commissioner Angelique Foster said: “Domestic abuse in whatever form is unacceptable. I think it is everyone’s responsibility to help tackle it, to shine a spotlight on the problems and to report concerns. 

“Unfortunately, this type of behaviour is under-reported. It is important that those affected seek support so that they can get the appropriate help. That’s why I’m pleased to provide funding for this project which I hope will help more people overcome the devastation caused by abuse in their own home.”