Domestic Abuse Suicides Rise to 150 in England and Wales

A report from the National Police Chiefs Council has revealed a significant increase in suicides linked to domestic abuse in England and Wales, with 150 suspected cases recorded in the year to March 2025, up from 98 the previous year.

The Domestic Homicide Project, which tracks abuse-related deaths including non-homicide suicides, documented 347 total deaths in that period, comprising 150 suspected suicides following domestic abuse, 80 intimate partner homicides, 45 adult family homicides, 43 unexpected deaths under investigation, 17 child deaths and 12 others. Over the five years from April 2020 to March 2025, the project identified 1,452 such deaths, including 641 homicides and 552 suicides. Women accounted for 73 percent of victims, primarily aged 25 to 54, while 79 percent of suspects were male, mostly in the same age range.

Police attribute the rise partly to improved awareness and a practice change last year requiring officers to check for domestic abuse history at suicide and unexpected death scenes. This has led to more investigations and 17 posthumous charges for abuse-related offenses across the five-year period, with three additional cases pursuing manslaughter...