Police in West Yorkshire have started a major campaign to tackle domestic abuse.

Officers in the county deal with three incidents of domestic abuse every hour – 80 offences each day – and there were 14,449 such incidents between April and September this year.

Four out of ten of those were verbal disputes, while a third were violent crimes. Figures for the same period show that a quarter of all violent crime across the county was related to domestic abuse.

The new initiative aims to encourage victims to report incidents so that positive action can be taken to reduce the risk of them becoming a repeat victim, as well as highlighting the help and support available to them. It also aims to demonstrate that firm action will be taken against the perpetrators.

West Yorkshire Police has produced a short film – which contains messages such as “How much more can you take?” and “Domestic Violence. It’s time to speak out” – aimed at encouraging victims to come forward. A victim of domestic violence has given an interview to speak out about their experience, as part of the campaign.

The Force will be working with other organisations to make sure that the message is targeted appropriately with posters and information cards being sent to doctors’ surgeries, hospitals and even hairdressers and beauty salons for them to display.

All response officers will be given a special ‘aide memoire’ aimed at increasing detections and supporting vulnerable victims.

Superintendent Ged McManus, of the local policing department, said: “Domestic abuse is a terrible crime which affects many people in our communities, not just the victims, but their children, family and friends.

“We hope this campaign will give people the confidence to come forward and report these incidents knowing that they receive the appropriate support.

“The campaign has been timed to coincide with the Christmas period when traditionally there is a rise in these types of incidents, particularly on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

“An increased intake of alcohol, added financial pressures and extra family time often prove to be a lethal combination – but domestic abuse is a year-round problem which the Force remains determined to tackle effectively.

“It is vitally important that all police officers play their part in this and continue to take a positive stance against domestic abuse.

“We want victims to be confident that if they do report incidents to police we will take action and that we will pursue the perpetrators and a prosecution.”