Giving a voice to women survivors of domestic violence through recognition as a service user group

Perhaps surprisingly, given the germinal role played by the women's movement, women survivors of domestic violence are not amongst those commonly conceptualized as service user groups. This paper explores why this may be the case and why it matters. It draws upon the findings of a multi-methodological study of specialist domestic violence services and of related user and professional views. It demonstrates the limitations to survivors' influence within these services, some of the key obstacles women experience, and the commonalities and differences between these and the experiences of other user groups. In particular, the specific issues of women still `being in the experience' and of professionals who are also survivors but who feel unable to disclose this are discussed as useful contributions to the theory of service user involvement.