A TRAFFORD domestic abuse charity is dealing with a sharp rise in the number of people referred to its services.

Trafford Domestic Abuse Services (TDAS), based in Gorse Hill, offers support to individuals and families in Trafford who are suffering or have suffered domestic abuse.

The charity received almost 750 referrals to its services between April and June this year - a rise of around 45 per cent compared to the same three-month period in 2020.

It hired additional staff and opened a new refuge in 2020 to deal with demand, and it is still looking to grow now.

Samantha Fisher, CEO of TDAS, thinks there are a number of different reasons for the rise, including the pandemic and - more recently - Euro 2020.

She said: "We expected a rise around this time anyway.

"We always do when big football tournaments are on."

And on the pandemic, she said: "The school run or work is usually a bit of a break from being at home and being exposed to an abusive environment.

"People haven't got any escape or any time out.

"Abusers are using the pandemic as a form of control."

Asked if TDAS has been overwhelmed by the rise in pressure, Samantha is unequivocal.

"Yes, massively," she said. "Other services were closed, so we were dealing with a lot of complex issues.

"In the past, you might have a conversation with someone for 15, 20 minutes to half an hour, give them some safety advice, refer them to our services or signpost them to other services.

"Now, you might be on the phone for an hour talking to someone.

"It's been a real challenge. I'm just lucky the team are so amazing."

To add further to the pressure, the charity is also seeing a rise in the number of men in need of its services.

TDAS received 40 referrals to its services for men in the last year, compared to just five in the year before.

This is not close to the number of referrals for women, but it is still a rise of 700 per cent.

In response, the charity is hiring an additional member of staff to deal with male domestic abuse specifically.

However, the funding for the role is only available in the short term.

Samantha said: "The role is fantastic, but the funding is only until March 2022. It's just so difficult to manage.

"We're starting a project and then we're automatically starting an exit plan because we don't know if we're going to have the funding."

For information on how to access domestic abuse services or how to support TDAS, visit the charity's website.

Trafford Council and Greater Manchester Combined Authority are both running consultations on the shape of domestic abuse services in the future.

If you want to contribute to either of the consultations, the council's is here and the combined authority's is here.