Agenda, the alliance for women and girls at risk, commissioned this analysis of the experiences of women who face violence and abuse. Based on data from the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey (APMS)1, it provides new and important insights into the lives and life chances of women and girls who have experienced extensive violence and abuse.

The report provides evidence that women who experience the most extensive abuse and violence (both as children and adults) are more likely to face other adverse circumstances in their lives such as poor mental and physical health, disability, and substance misuse, poverty, debt, poor housing, and homelessness. It presents a picture of the scale of violence and abuse these women face, the nature of their experiences, and how their life chances differ from the rest of the population.