Violence Prevention Avalon East has seen a dramatic increase in the number of calls received since COVID restrictions began to ease.
Those who work with victims and survivors of violence and abuse were particularly concerned with a drop in calls during the height of the pandemic.
Courtney Clarke is on the Violence Prevention Avalon East Board of Directors and has helped to develop and maintain the Unsafe at Home platform.
She says people don’t often reach out to police for support when it comes to domestic violence, especially if they have children. She says many feel more comfortable with the confidentiality of non-profits.
With the creation of the Unsafe at Home platform and now the implementation of the Domestic Abuse hotline, they’ve seen an influx of calls.
She says while police have only seen a 10 per cent increase in calls, the calls they’ve received have increased from one or two calls per day to 10 calls a day.
The number for the Domestic Abuse Hotline is 1-888-709-7090 while Unsafe at Home has contacts and numbers for a variety of community supports and services.