This 21-month research project will generate a robust evidence base to improve support for Polish migrant women in violent relationships living in the UK. It seeks to understand the reasons for the very low rate of referrals by Polish residents to domestic abuse services and thus enhance knowledge about how migration and transnational factors shape domestic abuse.
The project is a research-practice collaboration between Dr Iwona Zielińska, Ending Domestic Abuse Now Lincolnshire (EDAN Lincs) and researchers in the College of Social Science at the University of Lincoln (secondment). The project will start in August 2020 and is funded by a grant from the prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship scheme.
The project will combine multiple methods and data sources to gain comprehensive insight into domestic abuse among the Polish migrant community in the UK. Analysis of discourses on domestic abuse in Polish-language media will be integrated with interview data from practitioners (domestic abuse workers, social workers, police officers, health visitors), specialist domestic abuse projects launched for Polish women in the UK, and Polish women who experienced domestic violence whilst living in the UK. The findings will inform practitioner workshops, practice guidance, help guides for Polish women and national-level policy recommendations.
Dr Iwona Zielinska, Maria Grzegorzewska University, Warsaw Poland
Celia Madden, EDAN Lincs
Dr Michael Rasell, School of Health and Social Care
Prof Sundari Anitha, School of Social and Political Sciences
Dr Ros Kane, School of Health and Social Care