Victims of violence are being urged to break free from a life of fear as police highlight "a hidden population" of sufferers.

Campaigns urging people not to suffer in silence have been credited for the rising number of domestic violence crimes being recorded - with reports by men almost doubling in North Yorkshire.

In York and Selby, 185 crimes against males were recorded in 2005, up from 166 in 2004, and 616 against females, up from 486.

Across North Yorkshire including Ryedale and York, police recorded 425 crimes against males in 2005, up from 344, and 1,442 against females, up from 1,151.

In Hambleton, police dealt with 250 cases in the eight months up to December 2004. That had risen to 318 cases 12 months later. Reports by men increased from 14.8 per cent in 2004 to 27.8 per cent last year.

However, PC Phil Arnold, North Yorkshire domestic violence co-coordinator, said: "There's a hidden victim population who won't report it until it becomes very serious or we become involved."

PC Arnold said complainants were often reluctant to pursue a prosecution even though court orders could help offenders tackle their behaviour, such as through anger management and alcohol abuse programmes.

"Sometimes that's because of pressure from the offender, family considerations, loss of income or fear of social stigma."

His colleague, Joanne Ward, who co-ordinates the efforts of wide-ranging agencies to tackle domestic violence, said same sex abuse - such as a son against his father or two male partners - was increasing.

"We are seeing a trend where families have experienced domestic violence, and young teenagers are later becoming victims and perpetrators."

Hambleton Community Safety Partnership's Don't Suffer In Silence campaign ended yesterday, a year after its launch on Valentine's Day 2005.

It focused on the devastation domestic violence can wreak on people of all ages and genders, and organisers hailed it a huge success after the number of reported abuse cases rose by 27 per cent.

Posters depicting abuse went up on Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, school holidays and Christmas to highlight the plight of victims. The final poster centred on same sex relationships.

Partnership chair Rosemary Taylor said the campaign had highlighted a "hidden crime".

She said: "So many people are victims but feel unable to seek help and escape from it. No one deserves to suffer at the hands of their loved ones. Seeing a large leap in reported cases is a huge step forward."

Gary Harkness, of Yorkshire Mesmac in York, which promote men's health and offers a counselling service, said male victims, particularly those in same sex relationships, still found it difficult to come forward.

"They are not sure of the response they will get, and most services are directed at heterosexual men."

But he urged people to report abuse so police had a record of offending behaviour. He said it would also shed light on the scale of the problem and strengthen a case for extra funding for support services.

A leaflet with numbers and advice on how to leave relationships quickly is available in Hambleton district council offices, police stations, GP surgeries, health centres, hospitals and leisure centres.

Lifting the lid on domestic violence

MEN who are subjected to abuse by their loved ones experience the same emotional turmoil as female victims -feelings of fear, isolation and embarrassment.

PC Phil Arnold, a domestic violence co-ordinator for North Yorkshire, said complexities within relationships, whether heterosexual or same-sex, could "boil over".

He said: "Men are subjected to domestic violence for the same reasons as women - whether they are physical, emotional, sexual or financial.

"Women can be equally as bad offenders as men and men suffer the same emotional response in that they feel fear and they feel isolated.

"They feel as if they have been demeaned and embarrassed - embarrassed to tell even their friends and

relatives.

"Despite the fact that we are much more egalitarian these days, it is more difficult for men to fully admit that he has been a victim of domestic violence.

"They have a male persona which they project to the outside world. They don't like to admit they have been a victim of violence, particularly by a woman.

"We deal with all sorts of cases. Only this morning there was a same sex relationship - two males - where one had beaten the other with his fists. It does happen."

Case Study 1

George is 6ft 4in. He weighs in at 14 stone and is a trained karate instructor. But now he is directing his energies towards fighting for men who suffer domestic abuse.

George said: "One young man, who'd been married two weeks, had hot fat poured on his lap for changing the channel."

Despite his size and martial arts expertise, George was also a victim of domestic abuse.

George said: "She came upstairs carrying this large square of half inch plywood. She brought the edge of it down on my head."

George said he was repeatedly physically and verbally abused but said many men don't fight back, physically or legally, due to a lack of knowledge about what can be done and because they fear the kind of response they will

provoke.

George said: "Men dismiss you if you say a woman is beating you up. For a start, they look at you with contempt a lot of the time."

Case Study 2

Daniel, 46, was emotionally abused by his wife from the day of their wedding six years ago.

He said people who saw her in public thought she was a wonderful woman, but they didn't see the private side to her.

It was only after they married that he saw her temper flare up regularly and she used foul language in front of their children.

Once she started, she could not stop.

They discussed the issue, but she refused to go for counselling.

Daniel said he felt forced to leave the house and take the children with him on occasions.

Sometimes she hit him, but he was stronger than her so it never became a physical problem.

The couple stayed together, but Daniel felt he was losing hope.

Case Study 3

John, 21, had a fight with his boyfriend, Greg, which triggered their decision to split up.

He said it was the only mutual decision they reached in their 18-month relationship.

There was no history of physical abuse before the clash, and John said the emotional wounds would take longer to heal than the bruises. He admitted feeling shaken, used and distressed that someone he loves would treat him with contempt. He was also upset that he had resorted to violence himself.

Usually self-confident and used to feeling in control of his life, the relationship knocked his self-esteem.

Updated: 15:25 Wednesday, February 15, 2006