ABSTRACT
This chapter will explore findings gathered from semi-structured interviews with five social workers within a statutory child protection (CP) setting. The research was conducted prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, though the chapter will touch on the challenges faced by women and children ‘fleeing and leaving’ domestic abuse (DA) during the pandemic, including some positive developments that emerged within the DA sector. The discussion will introduce the reader to the concept of ‘fleeing and leaving’ an abusive relationship which will be explored within the context of DA and CP. The chapter will provide the reader with social workers’ own accounts and reflections on areas of their practice that can increase the risk to women and children, including (a) professional conflicts that social workers face in balancing prioritising women's safety whilst at the same time prioritising the safety and wellbeing of children; (b) the use of Written Agreements, a tool sometimes used by social workers to manage risk and gather evidence of compliance/engagement; (c) the use of the term “disguised compliance”; and (d) social work responses to women fleeing and leaving an abusive relationship.
