Donegal Women’s Centre and Donegal Domestic Violence Services have jointly welcomed the introduction of Jennie’s Law, which allows for the establishment of a Domestic Violence Judgements Register for serious domestic violence convictions.
The legislation is intended to increase transparency around serious domestic violence offending and allow greater access to information, while placing safeguards around victims and survivors.
The two Donegal services say this is groundbreaking, and reaffirm that they both continue to provide confidential, specialist support to women across County Donegal.
Mary Herlihy is Manager of the Donegal Women’s Centre. She says Jennie’s Law is a significant step towards improving safety, accountability and informed decision making for women across the county………….
Release in full –
Jennie’s Law will bring vital information and protection to women in Donegal, say frontline services. Donegal Women’s Centre and Donegal Domestic Violence Services highlight the life changing impact of new domestic violence legislation.
Donegal Women’s Centre and Donegal Domestic Violence Services have jointly welcomed the introduction of Jennie’s Law while reaffirming that both frontline services continue to provide confidential, specialist support to women across County Donegal. The organisations said it is important that women know support is available locally and described the legislation as a significant step towards improving safety, accountability and informed decision making for women across the county.
Donegal Women’s Centre, which provides trauma informed psychotherapy and counselling services for women, and Donegal Domestic Violence Services, which provides crisis specialist services support to women experiencing domestic abuse, have said the legislation represents an important recognition that women have a right to information that may help them make safer choices about relationships and their futures.
Jennie’s Law, named in memory of Jennifer Poole who was murdered by her former partner in 2021, establishes a Domestic Violence Judgements Register for serious domestic violence convictions. The legislation aims to increase transparency around serious domestic violence offending and allow greater access to information while placing safeguards around victims and survivors.
Managers from both organisations stressed that while legislation alone cannot end domestic abuse, it is a crucial step in recognising the realities faced by women living with fear, control and violence.
Mary Herlihy, Manager of Donegal Women’s Centre, said: “Every day we meet women whose lives have been deeply impacted by trauma as a direct result of experiencing domestic abuse, coercive control and intimate partner violence. Many women come to our services carrying the weight of experiences that have affected their confidence, their mental health and their sense of safety.
“Jennie’s Law sends a powerful message that women’s safety matters and that access to information is an essential part of protection. No woman should enter or remain in a relationship without the ability to make informed choices about her own safety.
“However, this legislation must be matched with continued investment in specialist services. Women need access to trauma informed psychotherapy, counselling, advocacy and practical supports when they seek help. For many women in Donegal, these services are a lifeline.”
Donegal Women’s Centre provides confidential psychotherapy and counselling services, including support for women experiencing trauma related to domestic abuse.
Fiona Jordan, Interim Manager of Donegal Domestic Violence Services, said: “Domestic abuse is often hidden behind closed doors and many women spend years experiencing fear, control and isolation before they reach out for support.
“Jennie’s Law is an important development because it acknowledges that information can be a form of protection. Women deserve to have every possible tool available to them when making decisions about relationships and their safety.
“We know that domestic violence is complex and that survivors need more than legislation. They need specialist services, safe pathways to support, effective responses from all agencies and a society that believes women when they disclose abuse.
“The message must remain clear, responsibility lies with perpetrators, not with those who experience abuse. Women in Donegal should know that support is available and that they do not have to face this alone.”
Both organisations emphasised that domestic abuse affects women across all communities, ages, gender and backgrounds in Donegal and that early intervention and accessible support services are essential.
They are calling for continued national and local investment to ensure women experiencing domestic abuse can access timely, confidential and specialist support.
Donegal Domestic Violence Service and Donegal Womens Centre are funded by Cuan, a statutory agency operating under the remit of the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, with a dedicated focus on tackling and reducing domestic, sexual and gender-based violence (DSGBV).
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