Controlling or coercive behaviour became a criminal offence under section 76 of the Serious Crime Act 2015, and it is part of the definition of domestic abuse in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021. The Working Together 2026 glossary describes it as a pattern of abuse, on two or more occasions, using many tactics to hurt, humiliate, intimidate, exploit, isolate and dominate the victim.
Since 5 April 2023, the offence no longer needs the people involved to live together. It covers partners, ex-partners and family members wherever they live.
Why it matters in school:
- Children are used in it. An abuser may use the children to control the other parent, for example by obstructing contact, telling the children to insult or hit the parent, or threatening to take them.
- It is hard to see. There may be no injury and no single incident. A child may show anxiety, be unusually watchful, or say things about being monitored or not allowed out.
- Teenagers experience it too. It can be present in teenage relationships. Under the Serious Crime Act, a child under 16 can't be a victim of the offence by someone with parental responsibility for them, but 16 and 17 year olds can be victims in their own relationships.
Any concern is a safeguarding concern and goes to the DSL. The Home Office's statutory guidance framework explains the behaviours in detail.