All Walks of Life - STOP the violence to people with disabilities!

Personal Safety Awareness Plan

Safety During A Violent Incident

The following steps represent my plan for increasing my safety and preparing in advance for the possibility of further violence. Although I do not have control over my partner’s violence, I do have a choice about how to respond to him/her and how to best get myself and my children to safety.

If an argument seems unavoidable, try to have it in a room or area where you have access to an exit. Try to stay away from the bathroom, kitchen, bedroom or anywhere else where weapons might be available.

To increase safety, I can use some or all of the following strategies:

1. I will use my judgment and intuition. If the situation is very serious, I can give my partner what he/she wants to calm him/her down. I have to protect myself until I/we are out of danger.

2. If I decide to leave, to get out safely (identify which doors, windows, elevator or stairwell would be best) I will _________________________________________.

3. If I need to leave quickly, I can keep my purse and car keys ready and put them (place) _________________________________.

4. _________________________________ is a trusted neighbor or relative I can tell about the violence in my home and they will call the police if they hear a disturbance coming from my home.

5. If I have to leave my home (even though I don’t think this will happen), I will go to ____________________________________.

6. I will have a bag packed with clothes, extra set of keys, copies of important documents, extra medicines and money and keep it at ________________________.

When children are in the home

1. For children ages 5 and older, I will teach them how to use the telephone to contact the police and fire department.

2. My code word with my children or my friends so they can call for help will be ____________________________.

Always remember - you don’t deserve to be hit or threatened!

Safety When Preparing to Leave

Battered people frequently leave the residence they share with the battering partner. Leaving must be done with a careful plan in order to increase safety. Batterers often strike back when they believe that a battered person is leaving the relationship.

I can use some or all of the following safety strategies:

1. I can call the District Attorney’s office to obtain a protective order.

2. So I can leave quickly, I will leave money, extra medicines, a packed bag of clothes and an extra set of keys with ____________________________________.

3. To find out who would let me stay with them or lend me some money, I will check with _____________________________________.

4. To increase my independence, I will open an individual savings account by (date) _____________________.

5. I will keep change for phone calls on me at all times. I understand that if I use my telephone credit card, the next month the telephone bill will tell my batterer the numbers I called. To keep my telephone calls confidential, I must either use coins or a prepaid telephone card.

6. To increase my independence, I will secure a job, arrange my education (financial aid), arrange childcare.

7. I will rehearse my escape plan and, as appropriate, practice it with my children.

Remember - leaving your batterer is the most dangerous time!

Safety In My Own Residence

(If my partner leaves or is forced to leave or I am in a new home.) There are many things a person can do to increase safety in one’s own residence. It may be impossible to do everything at once, but safety measures can be added step by step. Never assume my partner won’t find me!

Safety measures I can use include:

1. I can call the District Attorney’s office to obtain a protective order.

2. I can arrange to have an answering machine, Caller ID or a trusted friend screen my telephone calls.

3. I can change the locks on the doors and windows as soon as possible.

4. I can purchase rope ladders (fire ladders) to be used from second floor windows.

5. People I will inform that my partner no longer lives with me and they should call the police if they see him/her near my house or me are:

_________________________________________ (neighbors)
_________________________________________ (minister)
_________________________________________ (friends)
_________________________________________ (co-workers)
_________________________________________ (others)

6. I will discuss a safety plan with the children for when I am not with them.

7. In an event my partner takes the children, I will teach the children how to use the telephone to make a collect call to me or to (friend, minister, other) _________________________________.

8. People I will inform about pick-up permission of my children include:

_________________________________________ (school)
_________________________________________ (day-care staff)
_________________________________________ (baby-sitter)
_________________________________________ (Sunday School teacher)
_________________________________________ (school teacher)
_________________________________________ (others)

Items To Take When Leaving

When leaving an abusive partner, it is important to take certain items. People sometimes give an extra copy of papers and an extra set of clothing to a friend or relative just in case they have to leave quickly.

These items would be best placed in one location, so that if I have to leave in a hurry, I can grab them quickly.

Identification

driver’s license
birth certificate (mine and children’s)
social security cards (mine and children’s)
welfare identification
passports

Legal

your restraining order
lease, household deed, mortgage paybook
insurance papers - auto, life, health
medical records
work permits/green cards
car registration
marriage/divorce certificates
income tax records

Financial

money (cash)
credit cards
bank books
checkbook
ATM card


Children

school records
custody papers
medical records
favorite toys
favorite books


Other

house and car keys
small saleable objects
jewelry of value
phone card
medications
address book
pictures


Important telephone numbers I need to know:

police department
(home) _______________________
police department (work) _______________________
district attorney _______________________
work number _______________________
minister _______________________
attorney _______________________
school/daycare _______________________
doctor _______________________
other _______________________

Solutions - It's about awareness, education and prevention

These form the basis of our Solutions. Solutions that bred hope, coupled with determination to live life as independent from the fear of violence as anyone else!

Vulnerability is not a pleasant thought, No one should live in fear! Yet, for many people with disabilities, this is exactly the world in which they live. At home, in transit, at work, in care homes, in schools, the Vulnerability goes where they go.