MEMBERS of Salisbury Rotary Club were left reflecting on some stark realities after welcoming charity leader Nicky Alberry as their latest guest speaker.

Ms Alberry, chair of Society without Abuse and a former High Sheriff of Wiltshire, delivered what was described as an eye-opening talk on Tackling Domestic Abuse and Violence against the Person – and the work under way locally to try to end it.

She told Rotarians that domestic abuse is defined as: “Abusive behaviour between two people, aged 16 years or above, who are personally connected to each other – including intimate partners, ex-partners, family members or individuals who share parental responsibility for a child.

“The abuse can take many forms – be it emotional, verbal, financial, physical, mental, violent” – with the biggest problem being domestic controlling and coercive behaviour – particularly in the younger generation.”

Sharing national statistics, she highlighted that domestic abuse affects mostly women, with 2 million people experiencing some form of abuse each year.

One in four women and one in six men will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime, while two women a week are killed by an intimate partner.

She also pointed to the wider social impact, noting that 2 million families have no male role model.

The Society without Abuse, which has been running for more than 50 years, focuses on education and prevention, delivering Healthy Relationship Education to children aged four to 18, as well as working with perpetrators and the wider community.

In closing, Ms Alberry praised the work of Salisbury Refuge supporting women and children.

But she added: “If we are to bring an end to domestic abuse, we do need to look at both the root cause of the problem and the people who cause harm, and educate the next generation into what makes a healthy relationship”.