Post-Separation Violence and Abuse in the Lives of Women and Children

Post-Separation Violence and Abuse in the Lives of Women and Children amplifies the voices of women and children to highlight the myriad issues encountered post-separation when perpetrators of domestic violence and abuse (DVA) continue to exert their control. Despite increased scholarship on DVA and its consequences, post-separation violence and abuse remains an under-studied and written about issue. As the first book dedicated to the subject, this work frames post-separation violence and abuse as a continuum of DVA, too often overlooked and negated, and uses lived experiences to highlight the wide-ranging consequences it can have for women and children. Chapters offer detailed insights into the effects of harassment and stalking, femicide-homicide, the experiences of minoritised women and children, and a discussion of child contact as a form of post-separation violence and abuse. This volume also presents perpetrators' accounts, as well as consideration of what is required for rebuilding lives in the aftermath of post-separation violence and abuse. This essential work will be of interest to a range of professionals and practitioners across the voluntary and statutory sectors, as well as scholars and students of social work, social policy, gender studies, criminology, and psychology.

Ravi K. Thiara is Professor of Sociology at the University of Warwick. She has conducted national and international research on violence against women and children - domestic and sexual violence - for over 30 years and influenced practice and policy development. Ravi is particularly interested in gendered violence and its consequences in structurally marginalised and racialised communities (ethnicity and disability). She is committed to systemic change in addressing violence against women and children in all its forms. Christine Harrison is Professor Emerita of Social Work at the University of Warwick. She was a child protection social worker before establishing an academic career and taught social work for over 30 years in the UK and other countries. Her research and publications are focused on gender violence particularly related to child contact. Donna Chung is John Curtin Distinguished Professor in the Curtin School of Allied Health, Faculty of Health Sciences. Her research centres on violence against women, including family and domestic violence, sexual violence, and the health and social impacts of abuse on women, particularly those with disability and other intersecting vulnerabilities. She has contributed extensively to research, teaching, and policy-focused work addressing prevention, response, and systemic reform in violence against women.

1.Introduction - 'It's never over' 2.Understanding Post-Separation Violence and Abuse 3.'The Real Implacable Hostility?' Harassment and Stalking 4.Continuities of Violence: Minoritised Women and Children 5.Child Contact as Post-Separation Violence and Abuse 6.Femicide and Homicide 7.Breaching Safety: Perpetrators' Accounts 8.In the Aftermath: Rebuilding Lives 9.Concluding Thoughts