Domestic abuse

Last October, we launched a domestic abuse campaign across Nottinghamshire.

Domestic abuse can become such a part of peoples' lives that they forget it's a crime. Through our campaign, we want to remind people that domestic abuse is a crime. We're asking for third parties who know something about domestic abuse to call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. They might be family members, neighbours, friends or work colleagues, who have noticed that a person has more bruising or is taking time off work. We're also working with local women's aid agencies to help promote the campaign.

As part of the campaign, we launched a competition at the Domestic Abuse Roadshow in Mansfield in June last year. The roadshow was aimed at raising awareness about domestic violence and abuse and the devastating impact domestic abuse can have, not only on the victim, but also on their family and friends.

The competition was to design a logo for the Division's Domestic Abuse Support Unit, and comprised of three age groups – 5-8 years, 9-12 years, and 13-16 years.

Nottinghamshire Building Society contributed £500 prize money for the competition. The overall winner, 15 year-old Jessika Brown from Mansfield, won £350, which she has used to buy a computer.

The three runners-up were 7 year-old Shannon Harrison, 12 year-old Jamie Morleyboy, and 13 year-old Danny Shipman, all from Mansfield. All three won £50.

All four winners were given a tour of Mansfield Police Station in September. Jessika also went on a tour of local design and print firm W & J Linneys, whose team of designers took Jessika's concept and turned it into the final logo.

Sarah Smithurst from Nottinghamshire Police who heads the Crimestoppers unit in Nottinghamshire said: “We had some great entries from all the age groups, but Jessika's really stood out.

“It's a really simple idea, but is extremely effective and makes an immediate impact. The whole point of the competition was to find a logo that reflects the traumatic nature of domestic violence and abuse, and Jessika's design does just that.

“If someone is suffering domestic abuse or violence, we would encourage them to contact the police immediately, although we know this can be very difficult sometimes.

“If people don't want to call the police directly, they can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, where callers are not asked their name or personal details and calls are never traced.

“Any information Crimestoppers does receive is dealt with sensitively and referred to the specialist Domestic Abuse Support Unit at Mansfield Police Station.”