There were 49,557 offences of coercive control recorded by the police in England and Wales in the year ending March 2025, according to domestic abuse charity Women’s Aid.

This is an increase from 45,310 in the year ending March 2024.

Domestic abuse isn’t always physical. “Coercive control creates invisible chains and a sense of fear that pervades all elements of a survivor’s life,” said the charity.

“It works to limit their human rights by depriving them of their liberty and reducing their ability for action.”

Jessica Wilson, managing director at Eventum Legal, suggests that while awareness of coercive control has risen in the past decade since it became a criminal offence, many people still don’t know the full extent of what it can entail.

Signs of coercive control

Gaslighting

Merriam-Webster defines........

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