Protecting Your Personal Spaces : Practical Strategies for Ensuring Post-Separation Safety

Protecting Your Home

Whether choosing to stay in a home previously shared with the abusive partner or moving to a new living space, various strategies can help increase the safety of a residence in the context of intimate partner violence by:

• Installing a security system.
• Setting up surveillance cameras that can be monitored live on your cell phone.
• Changing the locks.
• Installing bars or additional locks on windows.
• Creating a fire escape plan.
• Asking trusted individuals to park in front of the house.
• Informing neighbours of the identity and vehicle of the abusive ex-partner, and let them know what to do if the partner is spotted.
• Requesting that your new address not be disclosed in court documents, school records, etc.
• Opening a P.O. Box and use that address for all correspondence related to your accounts.
• Considering breaking your lease due to the intimate partner violence and moving to a safer place.

Depending on your situation, you may be eligible for compensation for expenses related to securing your home through the IVAC services.

Safety at Work

Workplaces now have an explicit obligation from the CSST to assist in protecting their employees when they face situations of domestic violence. The CSST recommends that an individual safety plan be created by the employer by:

• Developing a procedure to confirm the victim's safety in case they fail to show up at the office at the agreed-upon time or in case of absence.
• Changing the victim's telephone extension number and email.
• Moving the victim’s workstation or changing their work location.
• Allowing flexible working hours or variable schedules.
• Programming 911 on the victim’s work phone.
• Creating a plan to monitor comings and goings within the company.
• Establishing a procedure for escorting the victim from their car to the workplace.
• Providing the victim with a panic button linked to security personnel.
• Allowing the victim to return to the office if they were working remotely.
• Allowing temporary remote work if commuting to the workplace is unsafe.
• Committing to enforcing any court orders.
• Involving certain colleagues in monitoring the premises.
  Allowing the employee to take temporary leave from work for safety reasons.

(Partial Source : CNESST)

Safety in School or Daycare

Children spend several hours a day at school or daycare. Different strategies can improve their safety while they are there by:

• Informing the institution of any changes in the child's custody and any no-contact orders between the parent and the child.
• Allowing the child to arrive after classes have started and leave slightly before the end of school to prevent the violent parent from using these moments to access them or the victim.
• If the child takes the school bus, escorting them to it after classes.
• Providing the teacher or caregiver with a panic button connected to security or 911.
• Circulating a photo of the violent parent and their vehicle among the institution's staff and inform them of the procedure to follow if the abuser is seen.
• Developing security strategies so that only authorized persons can pick up the child. If needed, modify previously authorized persons.
• Keeping the child inside the institution during recess, lunch, and after school.
• Establishing a procedure to confirm that the victim and child are safe in case the child does not show up at the institution.
• Removing the victim's home address from the child's records.
• Allowing the child to take time off or attend classes remotely.
• In certain circumstances, considering changing the child's school or daycare for safety reasons.

Safety Planning with Children

Children are at the heart of situations of intimate partner violence. They are co-victims and can be deeply affected by post-separation violence. While it is important not to place responsibility for the victim’s safety on children, and always to consider their vulnerability and needs, various strategies can be put in place to enhance their safety:

• Teach children how to call 911 and encourage them to do so in any emergency situation.
• Prepare a quick reference sheet for children with all the necessary information to contact emergency services (address, full name of the ex-partner, mentioning the separation, etc.).
• Foster a positive perception of police services so children feel comfortable reaching out to them.
• Explain to children what to do if the ex-partner comes to the new home—where to hide, which neighbor to go to, how and who to call for help, etc.
• Set up trusted contacts on children’s electronic devices so they can reach out for help if needed.
• Develop an evacuation plan for the new home with the children, to be used in case of emergency.
• Tell children that during a violent incident, their only responsibility is to keep themselves as safe as possible, not to intervene.
• Emphasize that they should not place themselves between you and the ex-partner.

Protecting Oneself from Harassment

It can be helpful to implement various strategies to protect oneself from harassment, particularly in the context of post-separation violence.

• Regularly change your habits and routes.
• Carry a personal alarm.
• Speak on the phone with an ally while traveling.
• Avoid wearing headphones to stay alert to your surroundings.
• Ask for the company of a support worker or a loved one when going to a location where the abuser may be (unless it poses a danger to these individuals).
• Prepare what you might say or do to ensure your safety in the event the abuser shows up, remembering that you have the right to pretend, lie, or act as if something is the case if it feels like the best way to stay safe.
• Document the harassment and keep any evidence in case you need to file a criminal complaint later.