However, this isn’t cause for celebration given it’s known domestic abuse has actually increased during the multiple lockdowns resulting from the Coronavirus pandemic.

More incidents and fewer reports is sad news all round, and it’s also concerning when we think about specific Child to Parent Abuse cases.

Founding Director Michelle John explains: “Child to Parent Abuse isn’t specifically categorised by all police forces so it’s not currently possible to track overall patterns in CPA reporting.

“We know CPA has always been under-reported and with the general dip in domestic abuse reporting during the pandemic, it’s a real concern that experts are having to make educated guesses about the prevalence of CPA.

“At PEGS, we’d like to see relevant incidents categorised as CPA so all police forces can look at patterns over time and respond accordingly. Of course, the other side of this is encouraging parents to disclose (either to police or to other professionals such as social care teams or their GP) so that we can get a more accurate picture of the scale of CPA. It’s believed it’s increased by around 70% over lockdown but of course we can never be entirely sure.”

There are multiple barriers to parents, carers and guardians feeling able to talk to a professional when they are experiencing CPA. That’s why PEGS not only works with families, but also with organisations such as police forces and local authorities to ensure they are trained on how to respond to CPA.

Michelle adds: “It’s only by debunking myths around CPA and ensuring professionals respond appropriately and effectively to situations that we can begin to encourage more parents to come forward and talk about their situation. We don’t want any family to feel trapped or isolated by what’s going on in their home, we need to make CPA a topic that can be discussed – and we need to ensure reported incidents are categorised to build up a better idea of exactly how many families are impacted.”

Please email hello@pegsupport.com if you're a parent who needs support, or a professional who'd like to find out more about training.