First 5 organisations given Everyone’s Business Domestic Abuse Prevention Award 5 organisations have today become the first ever recipients of the Everyone’s Business Award, awarded by Hestia, recognising their efforts in supporting their employees who may be experiencing domestic abuse. The organisations receiving the award are: EY Metropolitan Police London Borough of Barking & Dagenham Lincolnshire Police Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council 1 in 4 women and 1 in 6 men will experience domestic abuse at some point in their lifetime. 75% of those experiencing domestic abuse are targeted at work. In order to achieve the Everyone’s Business Award, organisations had to meet a range of criteria to demonstrate what they were doing to support their employees. This criteria included having a domestic abuse policy in place for staff experiencing domestic abuse, providing specialist domestic abuse awareness training, and supporting a network of champions within the organisation who can signpost their colleagues to support. Awards were given out to the recipient organisations today (23rd January) at the Employer’s Initiative on Domestic Abuse quarterly network meeting in Parliament. The accreditation forms part of Everyone’s Business, a programme of support to employers funded through the government’s Tampon Tax. The two year pilot programme was delivered in partnership between Hestia, Employers Initiative on Domestic Abuse, The Corporate Alliance Against Domestic Abuse, Cardiff Women’s Aid, Surviving Economic Abuse, Woman’s Trust, Bulbshare and TecSOS. Since it’s launch in September 2018, the Everyone’s Business programme has trained over 1,000 people and reached over 300,000 employees with messaging on domestic abuse prevention and awareness, in addition to supporting 39 employers with policy development. More business are currently undergoing assessment for the accreditation. Patrick Ryan, Chief Executive at Hestia, said: “Domestic abuse affects every aspect of a person’s life and leaves victims feeling isolated and hopeless. Almost all of us will know someone affected by domestic abuse, whether a friend, family member of colleague. Businesses have a unique role to play in breaking the silence around domestic abuse and ensuring victims can access the help and support they need. For too long domestic abuse has been nobody’s business. We are delighted to be working in partnership with employers across the UK to make sure it becomes Everyone’s Business.” Paul Quinlan, Head of Employee Relations at EY, one of the five organisations to receive the Everyone’s Business award, said: “This accreditation reflects our ongoing commitment to supporting employees affected by domestic abuse. At EY we provide a guide to help our people understand the experiences of their colleagues who are impacted and the support routes available to them. We also introduced new policies including: a week of special paid leave for those experiencing domestic abuse; access to an Independent Domestic Violence Advocate and a specialist counselling service; and an accredited training programme. Through our membership of the Employers’ Initiative on Domestic Abuse and our participation in the 16 Days of Action against Domestic Violence campaign we will continue working with other organisations on this important issue.” I'm an employer looking for information on Everyone's Business I'm an employee looking for information on Everyone's Business Read more like this: A day in the life of a domestic abuse refuge manager Hestia staff given 'champion status' by Mayor of Kingston Toolkit launched to encourage conversations on healthy relationships Manage Cookie Preferences