FIVE hundred children in the Bournemouth and Poole area are living in homes where domestic violence is commonplace, it has been revealed.

The children are members of around 400 families which have been identified as high risk of suffering violence in the home, according to a watchdog.

The Bournemouth Multiple Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC) identified the children and families in its risk assessment of domestic abuse in the two boroughs in 2010, says the Butterfly Foundation, which supports families suffering domestic abuse.

Now a project has been set up by Butterfly and the Vita Nova charity to help tackle the issues, by involving schoolchildren in areas where the risk is perceived to be greatest.

The charities have begun their Safer Relationships programme at Kings Park and Pokesdown Primary schools, addressing domestic abuse and the associated use of alcohol abuse in Boscombe and Pokesdown.

The charities say that both domestic abuse and binge drinking are prevalent in these areas and are at risk of becoming “normal” behaviour.

Julie Johns, creative director of the Butterfly Foundation, said: “Young children see the effects of domestic violence often fuelled by alcohol in their communities, schools, and too frequently, in their own homes.”

She said the effects on children could be “devastating” and could result in “a lack of self-esteem, feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, self-blame and shame”.

“The impact of domestic violence on children often leads to poor school attendance, showing aggressive behaviours and early alcohol and/or drug use,” she warned.

The Butterfly Foundation has eight years’ experience of working with families suffering from domestic violence and Vita Nova has spent more than 10 years working in the drug and alcohol field.

“This is a very exciting opportunity to work in partnership to educate children about Safer Relationships and we hope to make a positive contribution to families’ lives,” said Julie.

Ignatius Harling, co-ordinator of Vita Nova, said: “This is the first in a series of collaborative workshops jointly run by Butterfly and Vita Nova.

“The link between alcohol and domestic violence is well established, as is the destructive influence on family life. We hope that by taking this work into schools, we can help to break the cycle.”

According to the Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England, 1.3 million children live in households with alcohol problems and nearly 50 per cent of all domestic violence incidences are alcohol-related.

The funding for the Boscombe project comes from the Safer and Stronger Community Fund and Bournemouth Borough Council.

A further week of Safer Relationships will also be delivered to schools in the West Howe area before the end of this month.