A senior Avon and Somerset Police officer is set to feature in the Queen’s documentary about domestic abuse. Chief Inspector Sharon Baker has set up a network to support people who have experienced abuse after receiving responses from 130 colleagues.
The ITV1 and ITVX documentary followed the Queen over a year, capturing her work in ‘Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors,’ including private meetings with survivors and visits to refuge centres. Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, described domestic abuse as a “heinous crime” and expressed her commitment to raising awareness about the issue.
The documentary highlights Chief Inspector Sharon Baker of Avon and Somerset Police, herself a survivor of domestic violence, who has established a network to aid fellow officers in similar situations. After releasing a video detailing her ordeal, she was astounded to receive messages from over 130 colleagues who had also endured domestic abuse.
At a Buckingham Palace screening, Chief Inspector Baker said: “I had kept quiet for so long, for several reasons – one of them was that when I looked around, nobody was talking about being a victim in policing. I didn’t, so no-one looked like me. No-one sounded like me. And that made the isolation worse.
“I thought, it must just be me, so it’s my fault, and there’s no one else who’s a victim, so it’s my weakness. And I then got a glimmer that there might be more. I thought, well, what if there is more? And that actually part of the problem is our culture, that we’re not talking about it.”
Since establishing the support network, Chief Inspector Baker has seen a steady increase in colleagues coming forward each week to share their survival stories.
“We’ve done a lot of work internally now, changed our policies. The whole message in our organisation is – you will be believed, you will be supported. So it’s changing the culture. It’s OK to talk about being a victim and a survivor now.”
Chief Inspector Baker revealed that the force has recently established dedicated refuge accommodation for staff members experiencing domestic abuse.
The Queen has pledged to continue her fight against domestic violence until she is “able no more”. Speaking on the documentary, Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors, Camilla said: “It is going to take a long, long time because it has been going on forever.
“It’s been going since time began. But I think if you look at the steps that we’ve taken since the bad old days, we have made a huge amount of progress, and I shall keep on trying until I am able to no more.”
The 90-minute programme also features interviews with survivors, relatives who have lost loved ones, and those working to end domestic violence, including former prime minister Theresa May, safeguarding minister Jess Phillips, and Cherie Blair.
Diana Parkes, whose daughter Joanna Simpson was killed by her estranged husband in 2010, is also featured. Camilla credits hearing Ms Parkes’ story as the turning point which inspired her work with domestic abuse survivors and told the documentary she admires her “more than I can say”.
Reflecting on their poignant first encounter in 2016, the Queen fondly recalled it as something she would “never ever forget” adding that their meeting was “engraved on my heart” Ms Parkes, who co-founded the Joanna Simpson Foundation in honour of her daughter, has been recognised with a CBE for her services to children affected by domestic abuse and homicide.
At the same event, Hetti Barkworth-Nanton, chairwoman of the refuge charity, praised the Queen for her “tireless” efforts on this issue. She remarked: “Domestic abuse is something that, even now, is steeped in shame that is felt overwhelmingly very sadly by victims or survivors.
“Her Majesty vowed in 2016, when I and a number of others had the privilege of meeting her, that she wanted to do something to remove that shroud of shame and be a catalyst for change.”
It’s reported that one in five adults experiences domestic abuse in their lifetime, with an estimated three women dying by suicide each week as a result of such abuse.
A call to 999 regarding domestic abuse is made every 30 seconds, yet less than 24% of these incidents are believed to be reported to the police. The documentary ‘Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors’ is set to air on ITV1, ITVX, STV, and STV Player on November 11.